
The Phil Bak Podcast
The Phil Bak Podcast takes you deep into the worlds of economics, investing and entrepreneurship as Phil talks to the innovators who challenge conventional thinking and exploring the narratives that are driving market moves.
Latest episodes

Nov 2, 2020 • 38min
Greg Martin: Liquid Stock
Phil is joined by Greg Martin, founder of Liquid Stock and Archer VC for a conversation about how employees can access liquidity for private company equity and options, private vs public market company valuations, whether late stage VC companies are in a bubble, the future of fintech, and more.

Oct 15, 2020 • 39min
Alex Matturri: The Index that Ate the Market
Alex Matturri, former CEO of S&P Dow Jones, joins the show for a wide ranging conversation about his career and the growth of index investing. Alex debunks some common myths around index investing and then explains how he built a brand at S&P that led to remarkable growth. the conversation delves into smart beta, ESG investing, the role of the index committee, price discovery and more.

Sep 17, 2020 • 34min
Darren Riley: Entrepreneurial Ecosystems
Darren Riley joins the show to talk about all areas of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, including his work at Endeavor Detroit, his entrepreneurial journey at Rapids Air Quality and his new VC fund, Commune Angels.

Sep 9, 2020 • 43min
Vince Vitale: Advance CM & JA Stock Market Challenge
Phil sits down with Vince Vitale, President of the CFA Society of Detroit and Director of Equity and Alternative Strategy Research at Advance Capital Management for a conversation about the markets and about giving back. They discuss selecting active managers, factor based portfolios and US equity valuations, and then talk about giving back to the community and creating a legacy. Vince announces the stock market challenge - sponsored by the CFA Society of Detroit - and about Junior Achievement of SE Michigan, who the challenge is raising money for. Finally, they talk about persistence and grit and how that drives Vince's career. Register for the stock market challenge here: https://www.jamichigan.org/stock-market-challenge

Sep 2, 2020 • 33min
Patrick Kelly: Signal Advisors
Patrick Kelly, CEO/co-founder of Signal Advisors, joins the show to discuss fintech for financial advisors - including his new launch and how to advisors can seamlessly onboard annuities for their clients. The conversation then goes on to discuss entrepreneurship, early doubters, stoicism and more.

Aug 27, 2020 • 46min
Doug Drouillard: Shrine Development
Phil is joined by Doug Drouillard, Co-Founder/CEO of Shrine Development, for a conversation about technology, app development, startups, and how social media and digital distractions impact our energy and focus.

Aug 17, 2020 • 37min
John Bartlett: Investing in Infrastructure
John Bartlett, President of Reaves Asset Management, joins the podcast for a deep dive into investing in infrastructure and utilities. They explore the state of infrastructure in the US, why infrastructure matters, what factors drive the sector’s performance and more.

Aug 10, 2020 • 46min
Melissa Joy: Pearl Planning
Phil sits down with Melissa Joy, founder of Pearl Planning, to discuss how Melissa launched her firm, gender gaps in the wealth management industry, personal finance tips and more.

Aug 3, 2020 • 30min
Jared Dillian: DJ Stochastic & Financial Content
Phil talks to Jared Dillian about creating and monetizing content across various mediums. They also discuss asset managers blinded by their anger at the Federal Reserve, Robinhood traders, inflation, and Jared's DJ career.

Jul 27, 2020 • 36min
Ranjan Roy: How to arbitrage Doordash pizza delivery prices?
Ranjan Roy, Founder & CEO of The Edge Group and author of The Margins on Substack, joins Phil to tell the story of how he arbitraged pizza prices on Doordash and to discuss content creation, antitrust issues, Silicon Valley "platform" business economics, Robinhood and the game-ification of trading, and more.