Capital Allocators – Inside the Institutional Investment Industry

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Mike Smith and Nikhil Basu Trivedi – Footwork Ventures (Manager Meetings, EP.12) Sep 23, 2021

Show notes

On today's Manager Meetings, Beezer Clarkson speaks with Mike Smith and Nikhil Basu Trivedi. Beezer is a past guest on Capital Allocators and is a Partner at Sapphire Ventures, where she is responsible for the management of Sapphire's fund investments in early stage venture funds globally. Mike and Nikhil are co-founders of Footwork Ventures, an early-stage venture firm that closed on its first fund earlier this year, which was significantly oversubscribed. Footwork plans to invest in Seed stage and Series A companies with early signs of product market fit and the potential for decades of customer love. The partners discuss their blend of investing and operating skills, and their fundraising process. Before they kick it off, Beezer and I discuss how she discovered Footwork, her due diligence process, decision to invest, and gaining capacity. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

Luke Ellis – The Man Behind The Man Group (Capital Allocators, EP.214) Sep 20, 2021

Show notes

Luke Ellis is the CEO of Man Group, the largest publicly traded hedge fund company at $135 billion in assets across five distinct investment engines. Luke is also the Deputy Chairman of the Standards Board for Alternative Investments (SBAI), and previously joined the show to discuss the organization alongside Mario Therrien from CDPQ. That episode is replayed in the feed. This time around, our conversation is focused on Luke and his wide-ranging wisdom about markets and asset management businesses. We talk about his start in the business, his decade in the heyday of hedge fund of funds, and his last decade at the helm of Man Group. In the process, we touch on the role of CEO, Luke's perspectives on recruiting, growth, incentives, technology, private equity, and risks going forward. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

[REPLAY] Luke Ellis and Mario Therrien – Best Practices in Alternatives (Capital Allocators, EP.158) Sep 20, 2021

Show notes

Luke Ellis and Mario Therrien are long-time veterans of the hedge fund industry who hold the Chairman and Deputy Chairman seats of the SBAI, or Standards Board of Alternative Investments. The SBAI is an industry consortium that brings together managers and investors to set best practices for the alternative investment industry. In their day jobs, Luke is the CEO of Man Group, the largest publicly traded hedge fund company with $120 billion in assets, and Mario is the Head of Investment Funds and External Management at Canadian pension and insurance fund manager CDPQ, where he oversees $45 billion of funds managed externally. Our conversation focuses on the activities of the SBAI, including its purpose, origin, members, and evolution. We cover how members of an industry driven by different interests came to agree on anything and what has transpired since its founding after the financial crisis. We then turn to the state of the hedge fund industry and discuss its structure, fees, and future.

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Ryan Batchelor – Clifford Capital Partners (Manager Meetings, EP.11) Sep 16, 2021

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On today's Manager Meeting, Paul Black speaks to Ryan Batchelor. Paul is a popular past guest on the show and the Co-CEO of WCM Investment Management. Ryan is the Co-Founder and Portfolio Manager at Clifford Capital Partners, a $320 million value manager based in Alpine, Utah. Clifford employs a blend of core and deep value holdings selected through bottom-up research into sustainable wide moat businesses for core holdings and out of favor stocks for deep value holdings. The overlap of interest in moats led WCM to take an equity stake in Clifford three years ago. We'll start with my chat with Paul about what led him to Ryan. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

Katie Hall – Hall Capital Partners (Capital Allocators, EP.213) Sep 13, 2021

Show notes

Katie Hall is the Founder and Co-Chair of Hall Capital Partners, a $40 billion OCIO for high-net-worth families, endowments and foundations. She launched Hall Capital with the backing of Don Fisher, Warren Hellman and recent Presidential candidate Tom Steyer back in 1994 and has grown that base to serve 130+ clients today. Our conversation covers Katie's background, her path to starting Hall Capital, and her approach to the business. We then turn to her investment philosophy, customized asset allocation, and thoughts on alternatives, crypto, and ESG. We close with Katie's perspectives on governance and the future of Hall Capital. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

Leda Braga – Systematica Investments (Manager Meetings, EP.10) Sep 09, 2021

Show notes

On today's manager meeting, Mario Therrien speaks with Leda Braga. Mario is a two-time past guest on the show and is the Head of Investment Funds and External Management at Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ). CDPQ oversees $300 billion for pension funds in the province of Quebec. Leda Braga is the founder and CEO of Systematica Investments, a $10 billion hedge fund with a quantitative and systematic approach. Leda founded Systematica in 2015 after a decade of experience managing assets with her team in the same strategy at BlueCrest Capital. Before they get going, Mario and I discuss the key factors in selecting a systematic manager and the role of Systematica in CDPQ's portfolio. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

Mike Tian – Moat Trajectories and Investing in China at WCM (Capital Allocators, EP.212) Sep 06, 2021

Show notes

Three years ago, Paul Black from WCM Investment Management joined me on the show for a very popular conversation. At the time, WCM managed $25 billion in global growth equities out of the limelight in Laguna Beach, CA. Last year, I had a second conversation with WCM with Mike Trigg, the Portfolio Manager of its Focused Growth International strategy. Mike discussed the colorful history of the firm and its research to identify businesses with widening moats and cultures aligned with their competitive advantage. Both shows are available on the feed. Well, in the last three years, WCM has continued to excel and defy the headwinds of active management. Their $25 billion in assets under management three years ago has grown to around $100 billion today. Today's show is, in effect, the third meeting with WCM. My guest is Mike Tian, Portfolio Manager and Analyst at WCM, where he oversees the firm's emerging markets strategy and thinks deeply about moat trajectories. Our conversation begins with Mike's definition of moats and assessment of moat trajectories, using Visa as an example. We then turn to his application of moat trajectory analysis in China, including the value of heavy industries, analysis of culture, consumer preferences, risk, and some investment examples along the way. We close with Mike's thoughts on the moat trajectory of WCM itself. Please enjoy my conversation with Mike Tian from WCM. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

[REPLAY] - Mike Trigg – Defying the Fade at WCM (Capital Allocators, EP.162) Sep 06, 2021

Show notes

You may remember my popular first meeting from a few years ago with Paul Black of WCM, then a $25 billion asset manager in Laguna Beach, CA. Since then, WCM has gone up and to the right in every way, they sold a minority piece of the business to Natixis, continue to put big numbers on the board, and have grown to north of $66 billion, defying the fade of active management outflows. My guest on today's show is Mike Trigg, a partner and portfolio manager of WCM's Focused International Growth strategy that comprises the majority of the firm's assets. We discuss Mike's background, arrival at WCM in 2005, near implosion of the firm shortly thereafter, and the rising of the international strategy from those ashes. We then dive in deeper to the core tenants of WCM's approach, discussing how the firm analyzes widening moats and cultures tied to competitive advantage. Lastly, we talk about how WCM's growth has impacted the firm.

[REPLAY] - Paul Black - Gratitude, Fun, and Growth Stocks (Capital Allocators, EP.51) Sep 06, 2021

Show notes

Paul Black is Co-CEO and portfolio manager at WCM Investment Management, a $26 billion manager of global equities that he joined when it was a $200 million boutique in 1989. With so much of the institutional world, including my own training, focused on value investing, I was pleasantly surprised to learn about a large, high performing growth stock manager located in a non-descript building in Laguna Beach, California.

Our conversation starts with Paul's trial-by-fire entry into the business and turns to growth stock investing, including defining a great growth company, searching for widening moats, assessing a culture tied to competitive advantage, creating a positive culture, learning from mistakes, identifying tailwinds, and protecting the downside.

Paul embodies the principals he preaches and offers some tasty food for thought.

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Show Notes

2:54 – How Paul got started in the business

4:52 – Lessons learned in the early years of his career

5:56 – Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings

6:01 – Margin of Safety: Risk-Averse Value Investing Strategies for the Thoughtful Investor

6:05 – The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel

7:49 – What works about growth stock investing

9:01 – What constitutes a great growth company

13:47 – Defining and measuring a company's competitive advantage

17:50 – How does he assess a company's culture

19:41 – The Culture Cycle: How to Shape the Unseen Force that Transforms Performance

20:26 – Questions that help assess company culture

21:57 – Any data to back up claims that companies with good cultures perform better over time

22:46 – Culture aligning with competitive advantage

24:30 – Looking at WCM's moat and culture

31:23 – The landscape for active management

33:53 – Weathering tough periods for the firm

37:02 – How do they think about culture in other countries

39:01 – Why does growth stock investing work when the data shows otherwise

40:47 – What is he excited about in growth stocks

43:45 – Tailwinds at the sector level

45:10 – Downside protection in the portfolio

46:38 – Patterns of positive and negative allocator behavior

48:35 – How do they manage the change in the portfolio going from 200 million to 26 billion

49:53 – Closing questions

Jan Garfinkle – Arboretum Ventures (Manager Meetings, EP.09) Sep 02, 2021

Show notes

On today's show, Roz Hewsenian interviews Jan Garfinkle. Roz serves as the Chief Investment Officer of the Helmsley Charitable Trust, an $8 billion foundation dedicated to increasing access to health care. Jan is the founder of Arboretum Ventures, a $700 million health care-focused venture capital firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Arboretum focuses on investments "off the coast" targeting companies that seek to reduce healthcare costs in devices, diagnostics, services and IT. Before they begin, Roz and I discuss her discovery of Arboretum, attractive qualities of the firm, and positioning in Helmsley's portfolio. Learn More Subscribe: Apple | Spotify | Google Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Read the transcripts

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