The Story of Money

Latest Episodes:

Coming soon: Can AI help us speak to animals? Sep 14, 2023

Show notes

Subscribe now to the FT's Tech Tonic podcast: Some scientists believe that rapid advances in artificial intelligence may also hold the key to decoding animal sounds, allowing us to ‘translate’ them into human language. In a new season of Tech Tonic, FT innovation editor John Thornhill and series producer Persis Love explore how the same technology that powers ChatGPT is being applied to research in animal communication. Could we one day learn to ‘speak whale’ or even chat with bats? And if so, can we trust ourselves to do so responsibly?

Presented by John Thornhill, produced by Persis Love, sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa and Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.

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The Russian Banker, Part 3: Asylum Sep 13, 2023

Show notes

Critics argue Russia has a playbook for people who become its targets. On the final episode of the Russian Banker, we explore how Sergei Leontiev saw his fights with Russian President Vladimir Putin as a full-blown war in which seeking US asylum would become just another battle. But how does the US decide who deserves asylum?

Note: This episode was updated to clarify that Russia is responsible for forty percent of all publicly disclosed red notices to Interpol. A previous version stated it is responsible for forty percent of all red notices total.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Bonus: Arm’s race to IPO Sep 11, 2023

Show notes

This week, we have a bonus episode for you, live from the FT Weekend Festival in London. Michela sat down with two experts on Arm, the British chip designer, to discuss its imminent initial public offering. Tim Bradshaw, the FT’s global tech correspondent and James Ashton, author of The Everything Blueprint, talk about where Arm stands as a company, and what its chances for growth are when it goes public later this month. This conversation was recorded on September 2, 2023.

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For further reading:

Arm searches for growth beyond smartphones

Arm: IPO valuation climb down does not go far enough

SoftBank seeks to build investment war chest on back of Arm IPO

When SoftBank is selling, why are you buying?

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On Twitter, follow Tim Bradshaw (@tim) and Michela Tindera (@mtindera07)

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The Russian Banker, Part 2: The Whistleblower Sep 06, 2023

Show notes

Sergei Leontiev says he was a political victim of the Putin regime. But when we tracked down other people who used to work at the bank they had a different story about Leontiev — and the extent of his ties to Alexei Navalny.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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The Russian Banker, Part 1: The Raid Aug 30, 2023

Show notes

In 2015, Sergei Leontiev's life's work — a Russian banking business — was taken away from him overnight. Why were he and the bank being targeted? This is the first episode of The Russian Banker, a new three-part series from the Financial Times. The remaining episodes will air the following two Wednesdays on Behind the Money.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Introducing: The Russian Banker Aug 25, 2023

Show notes

Who is Sergei Leontiev? To the US asylum system, he’s an exiled Russian banker who was persecuted by the state and forced to flee. To Russia, he’s said to be responsible for massive fraud. On The Russian Banker, a new series from the Financial Times, reporters Courtney Weaver and Stefania Palma try to uncover the truth, and find a story that tells us about Russia today and how people in the west build stories about who’s good and who’s bad. The Russian Banker is a special series that will run on the Behind the Money podcast starting Aug. 30. Listen to The Russian Banker by subscribing to the Behind the Money podcast here.

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Did Binance miss its chance to rule crypto? Aug 23, 2023

Show notes

The collapse of FTX sent shockwaves through the crypto ecosystem last year. But it gave rival crypto exchange Binance, the biggest in the world, a chance to dominate the markets. The FT’s digital assets correspondent Scott Chipolina explains why Binance has struggled to capitalise on that moment.

Clips from CNBC, CBS News and Good Morning America

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The FT Weekend Festival is back on Saturday, September 2 at Kenwood House Gardens in London! It’ll be a day of debates, performances and more — including a live recording of Behind the Money. As a podcast listener, claim £20 off your festival pass using promo code FTPodcast. Get your passhere: http://ft.com/festival

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For further reading:

Has Binance blown its chance to rule the crypto markets?

Small crypto exchanges take advantage of Binance’s decline

When tackling crypto, the SEC should be wary of overreach

Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, crypto’s ‘corporate raider’

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On Twitter, follow Scott Chipolina (@ScottChipolina) and Michela Tindera (@mtindera07)

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The controversy around share buybacks Aug 16, 2023

Show notes

Share buybacks are a strategy companies use to return excess cash to their shareholders. But recently, they’ve exploded in popularity, and that’s sparked strong discussions inside financial circles. The FT’s US financial editor Brooke Masters explains why share buybacks have become so hotly debated.

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For further reading:

If companies are going to buy back shares, they should pay a fair price

Share buybacks need less hate and more scrutiny

Record buyback spree attracts shareholder complaints

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On Twitter, follow Brooke Masters (@brookeamasters) and Michela Tindera (@mtindera07)

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How Dubai is reshaping the global oil trade Aug 09, 2023

Show notes

For decades, the global centre for oil trading has been Geneva, Switzerland. But Russia’s war in Ukraine changed that. Sanctions have made it harder for western traders to move Russian oil. Now, traders are flocking to a new trading hub that has no restrictions on oil from Russia: the United Arab Emirates. The FT’s energy correspondent Tom Wilson explains how this shift has helped the UAE replace Switzerland, and whether the global energy industry is shifting away from western economies.

Plus, do you have your own burning questions about business or finance? Send us your questions and we may use them in a future show. Record a voice message here and we may even play it on the show: https://sayhi.chat/rmc2b Or, email Michela at michela.tindera@ft.com, or message her on Twitter at @mtindera07

Update: A new version of this episode was uploaded on August 9, 2023 to correct that Fujairah is roughly an hour’s drive east from Dubai, not west.

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For further reading:

How Dubai became ‘the new Geneva’ for Russian oil trade

Switzerland questions oil trader over sidestep of Russian sanctions

Letter: Energy trading is opaque — and that suits Big Oil

Switzerland/Paramount: block loopholes which swerve oil sanctions

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On Twitter, follow Tom Wilson (@thomas_m_wilson) and Michela Tindera (@mtindera07)

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Institutional investors take to the pitch Aug 02, 2023

Show notes

There’s a new club coming to women’s professional football in the United States. Next season will see the debut of Bay FC, out of northern California. Aly Wagner, a former player on the US women’s national team, explains how she helped get the club off the ground with an investment model that has never been used in US professional sports before. We explore how this funding model could change the landscape for American sports. You’ll also hear from the FT’s US sports business correspondent Sara Germano about whether this very European model is moving across the pond.

Plus, do you have your own burning questions about business or finance? Send us your questions and we may use them in a future show.

Record a voice message here: https://sayhi.chat/rmc2b

Or, email Michela at michela.tindera@ft.com, or message her on Twitter at @mtindera07

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For further reading:

Sixth Street commits $125mn to buy new US women’s football club

Why investors are cashing in on women’s sport

What private equity means for football

UK women’s football needs ‘strategic’ investor to sustain growth

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On Twitter, follow Sara Germano (@germanotes), Saffeya Ahmed (@saffeya-ahmed) and Michela Tindera (@mtindera07)

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com