The Meb Faber Show - Better Investing

Latest Episodes:

Jeremy Grantham, GMO – Short-Term Pessimist, Long-Term Optimist | #397 Mar 09, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Jeremy Grantham, the Long-Term Investment Strategist and co-founder of GMO. It’s been about a year since we first spoke with Jeremy and given his knowledge of financial history, there are few people who are better to hear from about what’s happening in the world today than Jeremy.

We start by touching on his investment in QuantumScape, which he saw grow to $500 million on paper and later decline by 80%. Then Jeremy shares what he thinks the societal implications will be from a huge potential write down of perceived wealth in the US if this superbubble bursts.

He also touches on some of his biggest concerns at the moment: the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, labor and materials shortages, poor demographics, and rising inflation.

While Jeremy is frequently referred to as a bear, one of my big takeaways is his optimism and excitement to solve some of the longer-term problems faced around the globe.

If you want to hear our conversation with Jeremy from February 2021, click here.

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Today’s episode is sponsored by MUD\WTR. MUD\WTR is a coffee alternative that supports your morning ritual without all the anxiety and jitters of coffee. Get your starter kit and free frother at mudwtr.com/meb and use code FABER for 15% off.

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(2:52) - Welcome back to our guest, Jeremy Grantham; Episode #286: Jeremy Grantham, GMO
(3:32) - What’s transpired in the past 12 months since he first appeared on the show
(6:14) - Update on his investment in QuantumScape
(12:57) - The impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on wheat prices
(19:32) - Would we be better off with robots instead of the Fed?
(22:00) - Societal implications of a possible write down in perceived wealth
(25:35) - Not being able to rely on bond diversification (Ben Inker 4Q21 Letter)
(26:54) - Jeremy’s thoughts on commodities and emerging market value today
(29:53) - Triumph of the Optimists; Credit Suisse Annual Reports
(33:02) - Why Jeremy is as a perma-bear but largely optimistic; Reinvesting When Terrified
(34:59) - What Jeremy is thinking about in the VC world
(38:02) - Jeremy’s take on nuclear power
(45:38) - The cost of capital and inflationary pressures in the coming decade

Wes Fulford, Viridi Funds – How To Get Exposure To Crypto In Public Markets | #396 Mar 07, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Wes Fulford, CEO and Portfolio Manager of Viridi Funds and the Viridi Cleaner Energy Crypto-Mining & Semiconductor ETF (ticker RIGZ).

In today’s episode, we’re talking all things crypto mining. Since there isn’t a Bitcoin or crypto ETF in the US, Wes wanted to provide investors the opportunity to get exposure to the crypto markets through the miners themselves. We hear about his background in banking and becoming the CEO of Bitfarms, which he took public in Canada. Then Wes shares why both experiences gave him the idea to launch an ETF focused on crypto miners and related businesses.

We get an overview of the miners’ business model, the importance of clean energy, and how the miners are impacted by the volatility of the underlying crypto prices.

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For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Sponsor: Today's episode is sponsored by The Active Share podcast. If you’re seeking the less obvious and are curious about the ever-changing world and how it affects investing, The Active Share podcast is for you. Hear thought-provoking conversations with thought leaders, company executives, and William Blair Investment Management’s own analysts and portfolio managers as they share unique perspectives on investing in a world that’s always evolving. Listen to The Active Share on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or TuneIn or visit here.

Rob Koyfman, Koyfin – Building The Go-To Investing Platform | #395 Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Rob Koyfman, founder and CEO of Koyfin, a financial data and analytics platform for researching stocks and understanding market trends.

In today’s episode, we start with Rob’s background at Goldman Sachs under the now Chief U.S. Equity Strategist, David Kostin. Then he shares why a personal pain point later in his career led him to start Koyfin. Rob walks us through the platform, which provides investors without Bloomberg access to professional grade data coverage and the analytical tools. We hear about the ability to use visual tools and create a customized dashboard to see what’s most important to you.

As we wind down, we touch on some wonky client emails and Rob’s annual April Fools emails to users.

As a special offer to listeners of The Meb Faber Show, click here for 10% off for new users.

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Sponsor: If you’re seeking the less obvious and are curious about the ever-changing world and how it affects investing, The Active Share podcast is for you. Hear thought-provoking conversations with thought leaders, company executives, and William Blair Investment Management’s own analysts and portfolio managers as they share unique perspectives on investing in a world that’s always evolving. Listen to The Active Share on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or TuneIn or visit here.

Africa Startup Series – Peter Ngunyi, EarlyBird Venture Lab – Accelerating Africa’s Startup Ecosystem | #394 Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Peter Ngunyi, founder and CEO of EarlyBird Venture Lab, which provides growth, acquisition and funding strategy for early-stage tech startups.

In today’s episode, we’re talking to someone who’s seen the growth of the continent first hand over the last 40 plus years. Peter begins by touching on his recent transition from operator to investor to help solve startups get access to capital. He explains why African’s have historically mostly seen real estate as the only investment option but are now starting to invest in startups. We hear about areas he’s excited about like retail tech and fintech, and of course some companies he’s excited about.

As we wind down, Peter shares why Africa needs to pave it’s own path and not just copy the US or Chinese model.

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Today’s episode is sponsored by The Idea Farm. The Idea Farm gives you access to over $100,000 worth of investing research, the kind usually read by only the world’s largest institutions, funds, and money managers. Join today and get access to quarterly CAPE ratios, an excel quant backtester and the entire research library.

Duncan Kelm, Arrow Point Tax – Strategic Tax Planning & Tax Mitigation Strategies | #393 Feb 23, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Duncan Kelm, managing partner for Arrow Point Tax Services, specializing in financial plans and processes for business owners, professionals, and executives with an eye on taxes.

In today’s episode, we’re talking about everyone’s favorite subject – taxes! Tax day is less than 2 months away so this couldn’t be timelier. Duncan walks us through some tax breaks for businesses, individuals & private investments.

We touch on the difference in taxes within the US and then get into the Employee Retention Tax Credit, which Duncan pounds the table about why more people need to know about it. Then we get into my personal favorite, yes, QSBS. We also touch on Opportunity Zones, which long-time listeners have heard us talk about before.

Duncan provided resources related to the conversation today: Employee Retention Tax Credit & his Top Tax Strategies.

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

Laurens Swinkels, Robeco – The Global Market Portfolio, (Realistic) Expected Returns & Global Factor Premiums | #392 Feb 21, 2022

Show notes

Today’s guest is Laurens Swinkels, Robeco’s Head of Quant Strategy and one of my favorite authors.

In today’s episode, we walk through some of Laurens’ favorite research. We begin with the global market portfolio, how it’s evolved over time and where crypto fits in today. Then we talk about his research on factor performance dating back to the 19th century.

We also cover his framework for determining expected returns for all major asset classes and why he and his team decided to include climate change in that analysis for the first time this year.

Be sure to stick around until the end when we touch on sin stocks, ESG, and even the tokenization of real estate and other assets.

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Today’s episode is sponsored by MUD\WTR. MUD/WTR is a coffee alternative that supports your morning ritual without all the anxiety and jitters of coffee. Get your starter kit and free frother at mudwtr.com/meb and use code FABER for 15% off.

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(1:35) – Intro
(2:20) – Welcome to our guest, Laurens Swinkels
(3:57) – Laurens' research on the global market portfolio (papers here and here)
(11:15) – Link to Laurens’ research
(15:00) – Where does crypto fit in the global market portfolio?
(21:22) – Laurens’ research on global factor premiums since 1800 (link)
(28:09) – How investors should think about factor investing
(31:15) – Laurens’ research into sustainable investing, ESG and sin stocks
(42:38) – Robeco’s huge report on expected returns
(52:18) – Other areas Laurens is researching
(55:37) – Laurens' most memorable investment over his career

Vinesh Jha, ExtractAlpha – Alternative Data & Crowdsourcing Financial Intelligence | #391 Feb 16, 2022

Show notes

Our guest is Vinesh Jha, founder and CEO of ExtractAlpha, an independent research firm dedicated to providing unique, actionable alpha signals to institutional investors.

In today’s episode, we’re talking all things quant finance and alternative data. Vinesh walks through his background at StarMine, which built a Morningstar-esque company for equity research, and then dives into what he’s doing today at ExtractAlpha. He shares all the different ways he analyzes alternative data, whether it’s looking at sentiment and ticker searches or using natural language processing to analyze transcripts from earnings calls. Then he shares whether or not he thinks alternative data can help investors focused on ESG.

As we wind down, we touch on ExtractAlpha’s merger with Estimize and the ability to crowd source financial intelligence.

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Radio Show - Meb’s Thoughts on Angel Investing After Making 250+ Investments | #390 Feb 14, 2022

Show notes

Today's radio show is with Meb Faber, Justin Bosch & Colby Donovan. We cover Meb’s experience investing in startups, including:

Why Meb started investing in startups
His process for sizing investments
The importance of making an investment plan if you want to invest in private companies
Meb’s biggest wins
Listener questions!

Resources:

Journey to 100x

How I Invest 2022

Meb's Deals

Episodes with founders Meb's invested in

Episodes with VC's and Syndicate Leads

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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This episode is sponsored by Masterworks. Masterworks is opening the doors to top-tier, blue-chip art investments to everyone. Visit masterworks.io/meb to skip their wait list.

Eric Crittenden, Standpoint Asset Management – The Market Owes You Nothing | #389 Feb 09, 2022

Show notes

Our guest today is Eric Crittenden, Chief Investment Officer of Standpoint Asset Management, an investment firm focused on bringing all-weather portfolio solutions to US investors.

In today’s episode, we’re talking with one of the true systematic investors out there. We start by discussing the potential impact of inflation on investors’ portfolios. Then Eric shares what led him to start a new firm focused on giving people what they need in a format they want – a mix of trend following and global equity beta. We touch on diversification and why Eric’s a true believer in trend following.

To listen to Eric’s first appearance on the podcast, click here

To listen to Eric’s second appearance on the podcast, click here

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Follow Meb on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube

For detailed show notes, click here

To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com

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Cambria Fund Profile Series — Cambria Value and Momentum ETF (VAMO) Feb 07, 2022

Show notes

In today’s episode of the Cambria Fund Profile Series, Meb discusses the Cambria Value and Momentum ETF (VAMO).

Meb walks through the strategy, which provides exposure to stocks focused on value and momentum metrics, while having the ability to tactically hedge the equity portfolio with strict risk control methods that are completely systematic.

He looks back at the fund’s underperformance prior to 2021, and sheds light on the strategy’s headwinds in recent years.

As the episode winds down, Meb offers some notes from a recent Cliff Asness paper on why the setup for value is as attractive today as it’s been over the past 50 years and explains why he’s excited about this strategy going forward.

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