The Wall Street Skinny

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52. Intro to Crypto (Part I): What's going on in the Crypto Markets? Mar 16, 2024

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Bitcoin is at an all-time high. New digital currency ETFs are coming to the market, broadening access to and increasing the legitimacy of an asset class that very few people truly understand. So we quickly caught up with our cryptocurrency expert Christopher Newhouse, DeFi Analyst at Cumberland Labs, to ask: what the heck is going on in crypto??

In this episode, we discuss not only the current state of the market, but also give listeners a bit of a crash course in how these cryptocurrencies are used, the scope of the ecosystem, and a quick explainer on the differences between some of the big names you may have heard of.

This is part one of a two part series. Next week we will bring Chris back on for a deeper dive into the evolution of careers in the crypto space, layer two economies, and the institutional framework supporting the future of crypto trading.

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51. Private Wealth Management "PWM" 101 (for the Ultra Rich) Feat. Tony Abbiati Mar 09, 2024

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Managing the wealth of the world's richest clientele is an exciting, prestigious, high stakes business. We sat down with Tony Abbiati, CEO of SCS Financial, an ultra high net worth private wealth management firm to understand the business model of RIAs (Registered Investment Advisors) vs. banks and broker dealers, the demands and challenges of these clients, the path to breaking into the business and achieving success, and the crazy things you may have to do in the name of client service!
Tony co-founded SCS Financial Services in 2002. He has over 22 years of experience in the investment business. Prior to SCS, he was a Vice President in the Private Wealth Management Group of Goldman Sachs. Tony began his career at Biogen, Inc. as a process engineer. Tony is actively involved in Year Up, a Boston based non-profit focused on empowering urban young adults. Tony earned a BA in Biochemistry from Bowdoin College and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

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50. The Finance of HBO's Succession Season 2 Mar 02, 2024

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Back by popular demand!! We continue a listener favorite: the finance of "Succession", the hit HBO series. We explore the hot topics of private equity, venture capital, mergers & acquisitions, hostile LBOs, and MORE through the lens of one of our all-time favorite shows. Even if you watched the show and loved it, you might not have understood all of the finer points! We are here to break down the key corporate finance plot points driving the drama.
Catch up on the finance of Succession Season 1:
on Apple:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-deep-dive-into-the-finance-of-hbos-succession-season-1/id1680425507?i=1000617362848

on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0WZmy82wGfoYigQOOHtDx0?si=BF2K9NGoRNO4H1rLAbhk8g

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49. Project Finance 101 & Infrastructure Investing Basics Feb 24, 2024

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What is Project Finance? In this episode, we are joined again by Rahul Culas, Julie Kim, and David Albert to get into the basics of this sector of Investment Banking. We explain what project finance is and why it's used, how it differs from the types of financing that traditional companies do, who uses project financing, who invests in project financing and more. We explore what the career path can look like from sell side Project Finance within the Investment Banking or Capital Markets division of a bank to energy and infrastructure investing at a buy side Private Equity firm.
This episode is also an incredible deep dive into the role of relationships and mentors within the industry. You'll hear the crazy story of how Rahul and David moved heaven and earth to bring Julie with them when they moved from Morgan Stanley to Carlyle Group, one of the world's most prestigious Private Equity megafunds.
Rahul Culas is Partner at 1585 Healthcare, an investment firm focused on healthcare services investments. Formerly, Rahul was a Partner and Managing Director at The Carlyle Group, where he co-headed funds dedicated to energy investments. Prior to Carlyle, Rahul was Head of Structured Power Finance at Morgan Stanley. Earlier in his career, he worked at Goldman Sachs in the Fixed Income Currency and Commodities Division. Rahul graduated with a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (“IIT”), Bombay, and a Masters in Human Computer Interaction from the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University

Julie Kim is Partner at 1585 Healthcare. Formerly, Julie was a Principal at The Carlyle Group, where she played the dual role of being on the investment side as well as the Chief Operating Officer of funds dedicated to energy investments. Prior to Carlyle, Julie was an associate in Project Finance at Morgan Stanley. Earlier in her career, she worked in the Equity Derivatives group in Equity Capital Markets at Morgan Stanley. Julie graduated with a BS in Math and Finance from MIT.
David Albert is Partner at 1585 Healthcare. Formerly, David was a Partner and Managing Director at The Carlyle Group, where he co-headed funds dedicated to energy investments. Prior to Carlyle, David was the Head of Tax Equity and Project & Structured Finance at Morgan Stanley. Earlier in his career, he worked at Morgan Stanley in the M&A group and Princes Gate Investors, a private equity fund within Morgan Stanley. He started his career at Salomon Brothers. David graduated with a BS in Economics from Wharton and an MBA, also from Wharton.

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48. Healthcare Private Equity Investing Feb 17, 2024

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Today as a followup to last week's episode where we sat down with two doctors, we are chatting with two investors in the Healthcare Private Equity space, not only talking about that segment of the investment community but also answering the mountain of questions we’ve gotten from listeners who ARE doctors and want to pivot into the world of finance but don’t know how.
Rahul Culas is Partner at 1585 Healthcare, an investment firm focused on healthcare services investments.

Formerly, Rahul was a Partner and Managing Director at The Carlyle Group, where he co-headed funds dedicated to energy investments. Prior to Carlyle, Rahul was Head of Structured Power Finance at Morgan Stanley. Earlier in his career, he worked at Goldman Sachs in the Fixed Income Currency and Commodities Division.

Rahul graduated with a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (“IIT”), Bombay, and a Masters in Human Computer Interaction from the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University

Julie Kim is Partner at 1585 Healthcare.

Formerly, Julie was a Principal at The Carlyle Group, where she played the dual role of being on the investment side as well as the Chief Operating Officer of funds dedicated to energy investments. Prior to Carlyle, Julie was an associate in Project Finance at Morgan Stanley. Earlier in her career, she worked in the Equity Derivatives group in Equity Capital Markets at Morgan Stanley.

Julie graduated from MIT.

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47. Doctors vs. Bankers Feb 10, 2024

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Many ambitious young people (Kristen included) consider pursuing a number of prestigious careers outside the financial services industry, and medicine often tops the list. Today we are joined by two incredibly accomplished doctors --- Dr. Bella Avanessian, a board certified plastic surgeon with a focus on gender affirmation, and Dr. Nisha Narayanan, a pediatric ER doctor, double board certified in pediatrics and pediatrics ER. --- to get an in depth understanding of the educational path, the costs, the compensation, the sacrifices, and the payoffs of becoming a doctor in America.
We talk about the tough choices facing young people considering a career in medicine and the resulting brain drain out of the field. Part 1 of a two-part series where we will subsequently explore the field of Healthcare PE, this is a must-listen episode for anyone curious to understand the role of doctors in the American healthcare system.

Dr Bella Avanessian is a board-certified plastic and reconstructive surgeon who specializes in gender-affirming surgery. She is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Mount Sinai in New York. She received a BS in biomedical engineering and her medical degree from Brown University. She completed her residency training in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery at Brown University/Rhode Island Hospital. She then trained as the inaugural fellow in the nation’s first Transgender Surgery Fellowship at Mount Sinai. She is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Medical Honor Society, American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), and the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH).
Dr. Nisha Narayanan specializes in pediatric emergency medicine. She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine and Clinical Pediatrics at New York Presbyterian- Weill Cornell Medicine. After receiving her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, she obtained her medical degree at the George Washington University School of Medicine with a concentration in Health Policy. She completed her pediatrics residency at the University of California, Irvine- Children’s Hospital of Orange County and subsequently completed a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine at the New York University School of Medicine- Bellevue Hospital Center.

Dr. Narayanan is the co-founder of Team Kid Power, an international non-profit that promotes pediatric cardiometabolic health in underserved communities. She is the primary investigator of a multi-site, school-based academic-community intervention to help implement diet and exercise policy in underfunded schools. She has received numerous awards for her work.

Dr. Narayanan has co-authored more than 15 publications and book chapters. Her interests include community engagement, health policy, child abuse, and quality improvement.

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46. Wall Street Compensation 101: How to Get PAID Feb 03, 2024

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Let's talk about MONEY. Maybe you're hoping to land a high paying job on Wall Street . Maybe you're hoping to maximize your earnings potential in your current job. Or maybe you know people who work on Wall Street and are curious to understand why their pay structure is so different from most other jobs. Whatever your perspective may be, THIS episode is the first open, honest, tell-all guide explaining exactly how compensation works on Wall Street. We spill the secrets on how to negotiate your pay, how pay cycles work, what a "bonus" actually is, how to navigate difficult conversations, and how to position yourself for the optimal career path. You will have specific action items after listening to this podcast that will empower you to take control of your pay, no matter what the specifics of your current circumstance.

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45. Private Equity 101: Lower Middle Market PE Deep Dive, Feat AJ Tracey Jan 27, 2024

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Today we take a deep dive into Private Equity --- specifically, Lower Middle Market PE. We sit down with experienced investor A.J. Tracey and discuss topics ranging from "what is the traditional path to PE?" to "what is a day in the life like?", and "how important is the name of the college or firm you're coming from?". We explore the differences between megafunds and MM/LMM PE as it pertains to investment strategy, nitty gritty of the job, and recruiting methods. We also discuss the economics of pay, GP catchup, blind pools, when and how PE firms start collecting fees, and more. If you have ever considered working in PE or wanted to understand the world of Private Equity, THIS is the episode for you!
A.J. is currently in investor with Cartess Investment Partners, a lower middle-market private equity firm focused on investing with exceptional operators in the paper, packaging and food industries. Prior to joining Cartess, A.J. was a Principal with AGR Partners and a Vice President with Kainos Capital where he focused on investments in the agriculture and food industries. A.J. began his principal investing career as an Associate with CIC Partners. A.J. has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA from Brown University. A.J. resides in Southlake, TX with his wife and two children.

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44. Search Funds 101: The Best Kept Secret in Private Equity Jan 20, 2024

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Ever heard of a Private Equity "search fund" aka entrepreneurship through acquisition? Well, we hadn't either... until this episode! Search funds are a relatively little-known but incredibly exciting and highly profitable niche within the private equity investment space.
Our guest, Nate Wasson, co-founder of growth equity firm Hal-Bar Partners, joins us to explain how Search Funds work and explore themes of entrepreneurship through acquisition. We discuss everything ranging the path to a career within one of these funds which is very different from the traditional Private Equity model, the role and mechanics of family offices in the financial ecosystem, values-based investing and so much more.
This episode is a MUST LISTEN for anyone curious about impact investing or anyone who is an experienced operators considering making a career switch. One of our most fascinating and important episodes ever!!
If you are interested in learning more about HalBar partners, please click here: https://halbar.io/
Nate Wasson is the co-founder of HalBar Partners, a growth-equity firm and is the co-founder and principal member of Alvearia, a family office co-investing community.
Nate has over 20 years of expertise advising investors and family offices, as well as their portfolio companies and mid-market businesses. His experience lies at the intersection of institutional family enterprise, investment management, and impact strategy for both national and international investors. Nate spent his early career in investment management, business banking, and as a JPMorgan consultant; he led teams ranging in size from two to 200. Nate later served as a Principal and Managing Director for Bank of Montreal’s US Private Bank, where he was involved in security selection, portfolio construction, marketing, operations, management, and investment product evaluation. After leaving Bank of Montreal, Nate developed the Midwest family office practice for Capital Group; there, he developed investment strategy for pre-institutional family offices focused on both public and private opportunities. He later joined Silicon Valley Bank to develop their institutional investment platforms, modern family office practice, and ESG investing strategy.
He serves as a subject matter expert in private equity, secondaries, ESG, and portfolio construction. Nate holds an undergraduate degree from Valparaiso University and an MBA from the Yale School of Management, with a concentration in asset management.

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43. Hedge Fund Investing: Point / Counterpoint Jan 13, 2024

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The news --- and the finmeme space --- has been abuzz with headlines talking about hedge fund returns (or lack thereof) in 2023. In a year when the S&P500 was up nearly 25%, the NASDAQ up nearly 50%, and risk free fixed income investments yielded 5%, most hedge fund returns look disappointing by comparison AT A GLANCE. But is there more to the story? Comedian and brilliant financial mind Anish Mitra joins us for this friendly debate.
In this episode, we explain why institutional investors invest in hedge funds, why they are to willing to pay steep management fees for returns that are uncorrelated to the market as a whole, and how to think about hedge fund (or any kind of returns) in the appropriate context. We also introduce the concept of Sharpe Ratios, a risk measure we will do a deep dive on in the future.

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