Inside the rope

In this episode of “Inside the Rope,” host David Clark welcomes back Tim Carleton, Chief Investment Officer at Auscap Asset Management, to discuss his fund’s performance and investment strategy. The Auscap Long Short Fund has achieved a notable compound annual growth rate of 16.1% since its inception (December 2012 to March 2024). During the episode, Tim shares his perspectives on various investment topics, including challenges and opportunities in the current market, his cautious approach toward sectors like China and iron ore, and his strategies for managing assets like the Charter Hall retail REIT.

Tim also discusses the impact of AI on the market and his views on cryptocurrencies, maintaining a cautious stance on Bitcoin. He highlights the potential of sectors like healthcare, specifically addressing how emerging drugs like GLP-1s could affect companies like ResMed. Additionally, he touches upon the importance of not over-leveraging in investments and the role of cash as a strategic asset. The episode concludes with Tim promoting the Mirabelle Foundation, a charity supporting children affected by parental drug abuse.

Tim founded Auscap Asset Management in 2012. He has 20 years’ experience in the financial services industry. From 2007 to 2011 he was an Executive Director at Goldman Sachs where he was responsible for managing an Australian equities long/short portfolio using Proprietary funds. Prior to 2007 he worked at Macquarie Bank within the Investment Banking Group.

In this episode of “Inside the Rope,” David chats with Amy Pham, Fund Manager at Pengana, about the changing world of property investment as interest rates change and more people work from home. They dive into how these changes are affecting properties in Australia, especially offices, and compare it to what’s happening around the world.

Amy highlights the trends in industrial and retail properties, why data centres are becoming hot spots for investors, and why it’s important to consider environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors when making investment choices. Amy shares her own story, from her early days using math as a strength as a Vietnamese refugee to becoming an expert in econometrics, adding a personal touch to her professional insights.

They also talk about the different kinds of assets you can invest in, how changes in interest rates impact property investments, and the difference between investing in listed properties (like shares) and unlisted equivalents.

Amy has over 25 years of property funds management experience. Prior to joining Pengana she worked at Charter Hall/Folkestone for 6 years, managing a high-conviction AREIT strategy. This team won several industry awards including Financial Standards Property Fund Manager of the Year 2019, Money Management/Lonsec Australian Property Securities Fund Manager of the Year 2018, and Financial Standards Property Fund Manager of the Year 2017.

Amy has held several senior positions including head of property securities at IAG and portfolio manager at Deutsche Asset Management and Perpetual Funds Management. She began her career as a quantitative analyst at Legal & General in 1994.

Amy holds a Bachelor and Honours degree in Economics from the University of New England and University of California Davis.

In this episode of “Inside the Rope,” host David Clark welcomes back Dr. Craig Collie from Regal Funds Management to delve into the groundbreaking developments in the field of weight loss drugs, particularly focusing on Ozempic, a GLP-1 category drug revolutionizing obesity treatment. Dr. Collie, who runs the Regal Healthcare Long Short Fund, shares his expert insights on how this new category of drugs is poised to transform the healthcare industry and wealth management strategies.

Listeners are given a comprehensive overview of Ozempic’s potential market impact, underscored by Dr. Collie’s projection that it could become a sales giant, surpassing current leading drugs by a significant margin. The episode explores the drug’s secondary benefits, its implications for the healthcare sector, and its broader economic effects. Dr. Collie also discusses the strategic positioning of Regal Funds Management in the healthcare investment landscape, highlighting the inefficiencies and opportunities in the healthcare market.

Craig began his career as a medical doctor working predominately in accident and emergency across Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. After completing his MBA at Cambridge University, Craig worked at the Boston Consulting Group in Sydney and New York providing strategic advice to corporations, predominately within the healthcare and financial services sectors.

Immediately prior to joining Regal in 2016, Craig was Head of Healthcare Research at Macquarie Securities Group for five years. Craig holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Otago, an MBA from the University of Cambridge and continues to hold full medical registration in Australia.

In this episode, David is joined by Koda Capital Chief Economist Brigette Leckie to discuss global economic performance, the impact of artificial intelligence on economies, and the implications of upcoming elections, particularly in the US, for the economy and investment markets. Brigette and David also touch on the current wars and their potential economic impacts.

Brigette shares her experience gained across the financial services industry and provides her outlook on asset classes, contrasting her views with the consensus on the street. The episode also covers a range of other topics, including the structural and cyclical aspects of economies, inflation trends, and the influence of geopolitical events on financial markets.

Brigette Leckie has worked in financial markets since the early 1990s. Previous roles have included Chief Strategist, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Australian, New Zealand and multinational firms including BNY Mellon, Alliance Bernstein, Perpetual and BNP. She has also worked in New Zealand Treasury and served on numerous public and private sector committees.

In the “Inside the Rope” podcast episode, host David Clark interviews Phil King, the Chief Investment Officer and co-founder of Regal Funds Management. King discusses his passion for investing and the enjoyment he finds in working with top companies worldwide and building a successful team at Regal. Despite his significant achievements, Phil is noted for his humility and simple lifestyle, emphasising substance over appearances in both his personal life and investment strategy.

Phil shares insights into his approach to investment, highlighting the importance of curiosity, good listening skills, and an ability to remain unaffected by market fluctuations. He talks about Regal’s strategic focus, including their trading approach, long-term investments, and the rationale behind their portfolio turnover rate. The discussion also touches on the success and volatility of Regal’s small companies fund, underscoring the balance between risk and reward in investing in small-cap companies.

The conversation also touches on Phil’s vision for Regal, aiming to attract top industry talent by creating a prestigious and successful firm, similar to Barcelona FC in the sports world. Phil also provides his perspective on the macroeconomic environment, the impact of the Chinese economy, and Regal’s position on various sectors, including resources and battery metals.

In this episode of “Inside the Rope”, David interviews Frank Macindoe, advisor and partner at Koda Capital, who manages the Koda Enduring Equities portfolio. This portfolio, focusing on ASX-listed shares, has achieved an impressive compound annual growth rate of over 14.8% over 15 years to November 2023. The discussion revisits the fund’s performance, noting a 10% increase in the final quarter of 2023, despite the challenging period discussed in a previous episode six months prior.

The conversation also honours the late Charlie Munger, highlighting his profound impact on investment strategies alongside Warren Buffett. Frank shares insights on navigating the current volatile geopolitical landscape, including the uncertain outcomes of the upcoming US and India elections, and how global tensions affect the markets.

Frank emphasises the importance of maintaining a long-term investment perspective in the face of short-term market fluctuations. He details the rationale behind portfolio management decisions, focusing on understanding future cash flows and the implications of changing discount rates due to fluctuating interest rates. The discussion highlights the resilience required to adhere to long-term investment philosophies amidst market volatility.

Frank also explores potential market influences in 2024, including geopolitical events and economic policies, with Frank and David distinguishing the differences between fundamental changes and temporary market trends in investment decision-making.

In the podcast episode of “Inside the Rope,” host David Clark interviews Cal O’Brien, a managing partner at Anchorage Capital Partners. Anchorage is noted for its expertise in mid-market turnaround investments in Australia, with an impressive average internal rate return of return of over 40%.

Cal shares his background, detailing his upbringing on a farm and how it shaped his career in law and later, in private equity. He recounts his transition from a successful legal career, where he specialised in mergers and acquisitions, to a focus on private equity. This shift led him to Anchorage, where he played an important role in establishing their first fund and later joined the firm full-time.

The episode touches on Anchorage’s investment strategy, which primarily involves taking control positions in companies with over $100 million in revenue. These are typically businesses that can benefit significantly from operational improvements, often being non-core units of larger entities. Cal emphasises Anchorage’s hands-on approach, including regular operational meetings and a strong emphasis on effective management teams.

Cal cites examples of investments, such as the successful turnaround of Affinity Education and the challenges faced with Scotts, a refrigerated logistics company. He also discusses current investments, including a New Zealand in-home care business, a childcare enterprise, and the renowned retailer David Jones, outlining strategies and progress in these cases.

Cal concludes by highlighting Anchorage’s support for Ability First Australia, a non-profit aiding disability organisations.

This podcast episode from “Inside the Rope” features David Sekel, a lawyer specialising in asset protection and estate planning.

The discussion revolves around the importance of safeguarding wealth for future generations. David shares insights from his experience working with substantial families, focusing on creating strategies for wealth preservation and succession.

Key topics include the complexity of family dynamics in wealth management, the significance of documenting family loans, and the necessity of an effective estate plan. The conversation delves into the challenges families face, such as ensuring wealth remains within the family, avoiding legal disputes, and dealing with different family members’ objectives.

The episode emphasises the critical role of powers of attorney, especially in managing investments and other assets, as well as the impact of family law on wealth management.

This episode of “Inside the Rope” features David Clark interviewing Andrew Rado, the portfolio manager of the Longreach Maris Sustainable Seafood Fund.

Rado explains how the fund invests in Individual Transferable Quotas (ITQs) for wild-caught seafood, a system introduced in the early 1980s in Australia. This innovative approach combines ecological sustainability with economic efficiency. The ITQs regulate the total allowable commercial catch, balancing demand growth with a fixed supply, thereby increasing the value of seafood and the underlying assets.

The conversation covers the evolution of fishing industry regulations, from uncontrolled fishing to effective management systems. These regulations have shifted from input controls, like limiting fishing days or equipment, to output controls, setting caps on the quantity of fish caught, such as the current quota system.

Rado highlights the fund’s significant social impact, particularly its initiatives supporting young, regional, and indigenous fishers. These initiatives include helping them acquire or lease quotas, thus ensuring the continued vitality and sustainability of local fishing communities.

The fund’s investment strategy is backed by the demand for seafood, driven by factors like immigration and changing dietary patterns. Despite challenges like international trade disputes, the fund has demonstrated resilience and adaptability, finding new markets and maintaining returns for investors.

In the podcast episode “Inside the Road” hosted by David Clark with Urs Wietlisbach, a co-founder of Partners Group a leading global private markets firm that since 1996, has invested over USD 200 billion in private equity, private debt, private real estate, and private infrastructure on behalf of their clients globally.

The episode delves into the global impact and investment strategies of Partners Group, emphasising the importance of diversification and effective management in the realm of private investments. Urs shares his views on private equity, liquidity, and current market trends, offering a fresh perspective of the current financial landscape.

A significant portion of the conversation is dedicated to Urs’s family’s dedication to philanthropy, particularly their active participation in the Giving Pledge. This aspect highlights the family’s commitment to social responsibility and their approach to leveraging their wealth for broader societal benefit.

The episode also explores the concept of impact investments, which Urs believes can achieve social good while ensuring strong financial returns. This discussion reflects Urs’s holistic approach to business, where financial success and social responsibility are not mutually exclusive but rather complementary objectives.

In this instalment of Inside the Rope, David welcomes Jason Coggins, previous Head of Investment Research at Koda Capital. Jason delves into the nuances of building investment portfolios, the dynamics of public and private market investments, as well as the importance of choosing the right investment managers.

He underlines the crucial aspect of tailoring portfolios to meet client expectations, ensuring both technical robustness and effective organisational execution. Jason stresses the critical role of client involvement, the wealth of experience, and the synergy between client objectives and manager commitments to their own strategies.

Further, he explores the concept of the opportunistic investment segment, which encompasses strategies with a longer time horizon, advocating for a cautious and methodical approach to capital allocation to mitigate the risk associated with timing in investments. This approach also involves avoiding an over-concentration in sectors like commercial real estate, tapping into global partnerships for enriched investment perspectives, and acknowledging the implications of fund size on performance.

The conversation also covers the pivotal role of a manager’s historical performance and the strategic importance of risk diversification within a portfolio as a means to minimise potential losses and sustain returns.

In this enlightening episode, guest Michael discusses the current state and future predictions for the Australian real estate and investment markets, highlighting the challenges posed by projected population growth and supply chain issues. He details how an influx of one and a half million people is affecting housing supply, stimulating discussions among politicians and media alike.

Michael points out the increasing demand in industrial sectors due to the rise of e-commerce and logistics, with a parallel decline in traditional retail spaces, a trend exacerbated by the pandemic. He also touches on the unstable conditions of the office and retail property markets, recommending prudence due to the observed downturns, especially in the U.S.

Michael emphasises the importance of focusing on sectors with robust fundamentals, like residential and logistics, and the need for adaptability in a fluctuating market landscape. He talks about the importance of aligning investment strategies with the ever-changing market needs, such as sustainability and decarbonisation, especially during global upheavals. The conversation rounds off with insights on the necessity of aligning managerial interests and having ‘skin in the game’, offering listeners an understanding of the ongoing dynamics in Australian investment and real estate sectors.

In this episode, David chats with Justin from Glow Capital Partners about the ins and outs of finance, private equity, and investment strategies. They navigate Justin’s career path, touching on the value of patience in investment decisions. The two also dive into the complexities of business valuation and address some common perceptions about private equity investors. Going beyond the stereotype of simply enhancing businesses for a quick profit, Justin explains Glow’s dedication to nurturing sustainable, long-term businesses and highlights the role of positive company culture. They wrap up with a brief discussion on Glow’s new investment fund and its potential appeal to investors.

Justin Ryan is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Glow Capital Partners, a private equity firm with a focus on investing in innovative and growing companies.

Justin began his journey in private equity investment in 1997 with Catalyst Investment Managers and later spent significant time at Quadrant Private Equity. In 2003, he took on a leadership role at the Australian Venture Capital Association, now rebranded as the Australian Investment Council.

Throughout his career, Justin has been involved in 22 private equity investments, with the majority already exited. Several of these investments have garnered recognition from the Australian Investment Council. Beyond his investment work, Justin has operational experience from his time as CEO and Managing Director of Alesco Corporation, a company with a diverse portfolio of industrial brands, which was acquired by Dulux Corporation in 2011.

In this episode, David Clark engages in a detailed discussion with Michael Lukin from Roc Partners about the intricate realm of private equity. Looking forward, Michael provides insights into the anticipated investment surge in 2024 due to overcommitment in private equity investments.

Michael delves into the complex trading process, emphasising the pivotal role of the brokerage market, proactive outreach, and the special bonds formed directly with private equity firms. A significant point to note is Roc Partners’ unique advantage in their information, allowing them to capitalise on opportunities that aren’t available in public markets. Michael further underscores the firm’s commitment to aligning their goals with those of their clients, by investing in the funds alongside clients. The conversation between David and Michael also touches on Roc Partners’ distinct fund structure, which includes a six-year liquidity option, designed to adapt to the evolving demands of investors.

In the latest episode of Inside the Rope, David Clark sits down with Mark Barker, Head of International at GQG Partners, a renowned asset management firm. Mark retraces his journey, originating from his early days in London’s hedge funds back in 1985, and eventually leading to the birth of GQG in 2016.

Mark also covers GQG’s investment strategy, which is anchored in delivering modest performance above the benchmark. Since inception in June 2017, the fund has been able to do this, with returns of 14.10% p.a. net of fees to 31 July 2023, compared to the MSCI All Country World Index’s 10.69% p.a. Mark also outlines how GQG develops a comprehensive global perspective, emphasizing the nature of emerging and developed markets, yet also noting the challenges they pose.

The conversation also shifts to GQG’s current market analysis, especially the post-pandemic shift from emphasising production to valuing profitability. Additionally, Mark and David discuss the enduring demand for oil, even as the world vigorously marches towards green energy solutions. Reflecting on GQG’s decision to divest from tech in 2021, Mark offers a candid insight into the company’s dedication to growth and adaptability. Amidst looming uncertainties around the U.S. economy, Mark still exhibits a level of optimism, citing recent economic trends. In concluding the episode, Mark suggests a bright future for active management but emphasises the importance of managing return expectations for clients.

In this episode of Inside the Rope, David is joined by Cooper Stainbrook of Ibex Investors to delve into Cooper’s recent research on commercial real estate and the potential economic risks. The episode begins by addressing the global trend towards remote work, discussing its potential to drive corporations to scale back their office footprints, possibly affecting office property values.

David and Cooper also shed light on the precarious terrain for real estate investors, emphasising sharp declines in property transaction volumes and uncertain asset values. They also discuss the challenges confronting regional banks in the US. These banks have significantly increased their exposure to commercial real estate mortgages, potentially at the least opportune moment. If these banks suffer losses, Cooper argues that we could be looking at broader economic ramifications, including a reduction in credit availability.

Cooper joined Ibex Investors in 2017 to assist with the research and portfolio management of Ibex strategies. Prior to joining Ibex, Cooper was a member of a four-person investment team managing over $4 billion at Edgehill Endowment Partners. Cooper graduated with a B.A. in Economics from Yale University in 2015.

In this episode of “Inside the Rope,” host David Clark interviews Frank Macindoe, a Koda Partner & Adviser that oversees the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio of ASX-listed shares. The portfolio has achieved an impressive compound annual growth rate of approximately 14% p.a. over the past 15 years. Frank delves into the current economic landscape, characterised by the end of a long period of declining interest rates, low inflation, and the pandemic’s impact. Despite the prevailing uncertainties, Frank adheres to a long-term investment approach, seeking companies that surpass the broader economy, possess competitive advantages (such as intellectual property or scale), and are not heavily reliant on capital. He emphasises focusing on companies with growth potential over a five-year horizon.

Throughout the conversation, Frank expresses optimism for healthcare sector companies like Cochlear, CSL, and ResMed, which faced challenges during the pandemic but are expected to thrive as healthcare returns to normal. However, he avoids investments in banks due to increasing regulatory constraints. Frank also voices concerns about rising bond rates and inflation, which could pose challenges for long-term growth companies. Additionally, he mentions potential risks related to China’s economy, US politics, and geopolitical tensions. Regarding artificial intelligence (AI), Frank recommends investing in companies that can leverage AI rather than attempting to pick the ultimate AI technology winner. He notes that businesses with a significant workforce may be vulnerable to AI-driven disruptions.

In this episode, David Clark chats with return guest David Witkin, the founder of Beryl Capital Management. They discuss merger arbitrage and event-driven investing, focusing on the current regulatory environment in mergers and acquisitions.

The two discuss the potential merger between LIV Golf and the PGA. Witkin, commented that if it were a public deal, he would be shorting the deal due to concerns about antitrust issues. He mentions that the combination of LIV golf and PGA, which were previously competitors, could be seen as an attempt to eliminate competition, something that the Department of Justice would not allow.

Witkin also shares insights on his fund’s performance, emphasizing its compound annual growth rate and alignment of interests with investors. The conversation highlights the importance of experience and research in analysing deals and managing position sizes effectively. He also discusses the role of antitrust regulators and their impact on deal closures and spread widening. He notes that while some deals may be blocked, the US antitrust system allows for challenges in court, with historically around 50% of blocks being overturned. Witkin emphasizes the need to stay informed by following court cases and dockets. The conversation underscores the less volatile nature of merger arbitrage and the potential for high-risk-adjusted returns.

In this episode, David is joined by Andrew Rothery to discuss the opportunities and advantages of investing in private markets. Andrew highlights the broad range of assets that can find a home in the private market, including equities, debt securities, and alternative investments like oil and gas. He emphasizes that private ownership is more about the needs of the investor rather than the specific asset class.

The conversation explores Andrew’s positions as a non-executive director in various businesses, such as a deep tech incubator and a property development company focused on community-building. He also mentions his involvement with Blackbird Ventures and LeapFrog Investments, showcasing the growing venture capital and impact investing sectors.

Andrew stresses the importance of track records when selecting managers in the private asset space. He encourages investors to look for managers with a successful history and a proven ability to generate returns. Additionally, he highlights the role of advisory boards in managing conflicts of interest in venture capital funds. If this is done well, Andrew believes private markets can offer investors the potential for high returns, diversification, and the opportunity to invest in impactful and innovative businesses.

In this episode, David is joined once again by Chris Joye, Chief Investment Officer at Coolabah Capital. They discuss the current state and future of various asset classes, including residential property prices, cash, and bonds. David and Chris also delve into the basis for the RBA’s 2-3% inflation target and its significance in forming their cash rate decisions.

Chris emphasizes the importance of liquidity, optionality, and risk management for investors, favouring cash and high-grade floating rate bonds issued by governments, banks, or too big to fail companies. He warns of potential disaster in commercial real estate and retains his prediction for a peak to trough correction of 15-25% in Australian residential house prices. Chris argues that booming asset prices over past years have been driven by cheap borrowing costs, which are now reversing, leading to a significant change in financial market dynamics. He also touches upon the Reserve Bank of Australia’s interest rate decisions, suggesting there may be a few more hikes to come.

With his contrarian views and successful track record, Chris provides valuable insights on navigating the market.

In this episode of Inside The Rope, David is joined once again by Kim Morrison, the Chief Investment Officer at Argyle Group.

Kim joins David to discuss the Argyle Water Fund, a fund that aims to provide investors with opportunities to invest in water rights and agricultural assets in Australia. By investing in these assets, the fund seeks to generate long-term returns for its investors while supporting the growth and development of the agricultural sector. By investing in water rights, the fund helps farmers unlock capital from their balance sheets, allowing them to transition to high-value crops and undertake long-term developments. This enables farmers to access their own private capital, leading to increased capacity to make their operations more sustainable.

The episode also highlights the stability of the legislative framework governing water rights in Australia. Including the deliberate processes implemented by the government, including buybacks, to balance water allocation between environmental flows and consumption. Kim also covers the concerns about environmental impacts, such as fish deaths, which can be attributed to natural factors like rainfall and flooding, rather than excessive water extraction by agriculture.

In this episode of the “Inside the Rope” podcast, host David Clark interviews Mitch Taylor, co-founder of Longreach Credit Investors and manager of the Longreach Direct Lending Fund.

The Longreach Direct Lending Fund writes senior loans to Australian and some New Zealand corporate borrowers, focusing on highly creditworthy borrowers that may have been neglected by traditional banks. Mitch explains how the fund is protecting against higher interest rates and inflation, and discusses the fund’s performance over the past 12 months, which has returned 8.74%. Mitch also touches on his background in credit and his experience working on a distressed credit trading desk during the 2008 financial crisis, which has informed the Longreach Credit Investors’ approach to protecting capital.

Mitch has a background in credit, including 16 years with Macquarie Group in Australia and the US markets. He also worked for Corda Mentha in insolvency and advisory work before joining Longreach Credit Investors in 2017. Mitch Taylor was previously a guest on episode 15 back in 2018.

In this episode of Inside The Rope, David Clark is joined again by Roger Lloyd, founder and managing director of Palisade Investment Partners, an independent Australian infrastructure manager. Roger shares insights into the Palisade Infrastructure Trust and discusses how the fund has performed over the past year. He also provides an update on some of the key infrastructure assets in the Palisade portfolio and the company’s approach to managing these assets.

Roger also discusses the importance of sustainability in infrastructure investing and shares his thoughts on the role that infrastructure can play in driving economic growth. Finally, he reflects on his long career in the infrastructure industry and shares some lessons he has learned along the way.

Roger Lloyd is the founder and managing director of Palisade Investment Partners, an Australian infrastructure manager that invests in core infrastructure assets across Australia and New Zealand. With over 30 years of experience in the infrastructure industry, Lloyd has been a key contributor to the development of the Australian infrastructure market. He is also a board member of several of Palisade’s portfolio companies and holds a Bachelor of Engineering and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Melbourne.

Tom joined Nanuk in 2009 as a director of the firm, the firm’s chief investment officer and one of the firm’s portfolio managers with approximately 20 years’ investment industry experience in equity funds management, investment banking and private equity. Before his career in finance, Tom won a gold medal in sailing at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and paved the way for Australian high-performance sailors for years to come. In recognition of these accomplishments, Tom was also awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia.

Nanuk Asset Management was established in 2009 to develop world-leading expertise in the investment opportunities and risks associated with environmental sustainability and resource use efficiency. Nanuk does this by investing in globally listed companies associated with the broad themes of clean energy, energy efficiency, industrial efficiency, waste management, pollution control, food & agriculture, advanced & sustainable materials, water and healthcare technology. Nanuk takes an active, fundamental, valuation and research-driven investment approach. They incorporate positive and negative screening, ESG factors and values-based norms into their decision-making process.

In this episode, David is joined by David Blood to discuss his views on sustainable investing in 2023. David Blood is considered by many to be one of the pioneers of sustainable investment management.

Almost 20 years ago In 2004, David created Generation Investment Management alongside Al Gore the former Vice President of the United States, a fund that invests with the mission to seek transformational change to drive to a net zero, prosperous, equitable, healthy and safe society. Prior to to creating Generation Investment Management, David was the CEO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

David Blood is a Founding Partner and Senior Partner of Generation Investment Management. He also serves as Chairperson of Just Climate. Previously, David spent 18 years at Goldman Sachs including serving as CEO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management. David received a BA from Hamilton College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. David is chairperson of Social Finance UK and co-chair of the World Resources Institute and on the board of Dialight and On the Edge Conservation.

David is joined by Mike Lukin, the Managing Partner of Roc Partners, a mid-market corporate finance specialist providing predominately sub-investment grade debt to private, sponsored and public companies. Roc’s strategy focuses on senior debt, uni-tranche and mezzanine finance to support companies with their strategic growth, M&A and expansion initiatives.

Mike is the Group Managing Partner of Roc Partners where he is responsible for leading client relationships and investment activities in several markets. Mike was one of the founding partners of Roc Partners following the management buy-out of Macquarie Group’s private markets business unit (“MIMPM”) by its senior executives in June 2014.

He currently serves as a director of Roc Partners investee companies StoneAxe, Australia’s Oyster Coast, Hirepool, National Dental Care, Infrastructure Advisory Group and Pacific Metals Group. Mike holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Applied Mathematics, is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Associate of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia.

In this episode, Rob Rayner the CEO of RF CorVal joins David to discuss his career to date, valuations in Australian property, and Rob’s outlook for property assets during an environment of rising interest rates.

RF CorVal is a specialist property fund manager that manages funds on behalf of a broad range of investors. Since its inception in 2009, RF CorVal has acquired $2.6 billion of real estate on behalf of large institutions, family offices, offshore groups, wholesale and retail investors and delivered a weighted average Equity IRR to investors of approximately 20% to January 2023.

Rob is the founder and CEO of RF Corval. Rob has some 30 years of experience in the Australian financial services and property industry, with wide-ranging involvement in the establishment, re-structuring and on-going management of various property funds on behalf of both retail and private wholesale investors, family offices and institutional mandates. Rob has a Bachelor of Business from Curtin University and is an associate member of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and the Financial Securities Institute of Australia.

In this episode, David is joined by Rob Tucker, the founder and Portfolio Manager of the Chester High Conviction Fund, a strategy that since its inception in October 2013 has produced a return of 13.7% p.a. David and Rob discuss the strategy in-depth, as well as Rob’s outlook on current markets.

 The Chester High Conviction Fund takes a high-conviction approach, choosing investments, where they have confidence in the high quality, predictable cash generation of the company, or they, have strong confidence in the valuation margin of safety. The team believe that finding unloved, underappreciated or undiscovered investments has been the most consistent source of capital growth for the strategy over 8 years.

Rob founded Chester Asset Management in 2017. Prior to Chester, Rob spent 7 years at SG Hiscock and was most recently the portfolio manager of the SGH Australia Plus product, a 25-40 stock Australian Equity portfolio with a mid-cap bias, that was run in the same manner as the Chester High Conviction Fund.

Andrew joins David to discuss the Longreach Energy Income Fund, a fund that targets a total return of 20% p.a. (net of fees) inclusive of an income return target of 8% p.a. by investing in US energy through real assets, such as producing land and mineral interests.

As economies transition towards a future global energy mix increasingly powered by renewable energy, Longreach argue that natural gas offers the most sustainable bridge to greener technologies. Throughout the episode, Andrew covers the investment opportunity available in US natural gas assets, and in particular how this compares to global counterparts including Australia.

Andrew has extensive principal investment experience in global upstream gas and oil, gained during a career that has seen him co-found and lead the London office for the gas and oil investment division of Macquarie Bank. He has particular expertise in transaction execution, financial modelling and structuring investments as well as identifying attractive projects and evaluating the commercial potential of assets.

Andrew joins David to discuss the Longreach Energy Income Fund, a fund that targets a total return of 20% p.a. (net of fees) inclusive of an income return target of 8% p.a. by investing in US energy through real assets, such as producing land and mineral interests.

Juan Penelas joins David to discuss e360 Power, a Texas-based asset management firm founded in 2009 designed to generate superior absolute returns through fundamental discretionary trading strategies in the North American electricity, global natural gas and related energy futures & options markets. Since its inception in November 2009 to October 2022, the strategy has returned 36.2% per annum (AUD),

Juan is a member of the Investment Committee and a Portfolio Manager with trading responsibility across power and related portfolios including power volatility. Prior to establishing e360 Power, Juan was a senior power and gas trader at Griffon Energy Capital, LLC (“GEC”) where he co-headed the power desk. Prior to joining GEC, Juan was the head of PJM Power Cash Trading for American Electric Power Energy Service (“AEP”). Juan has worked internationally in the energy and metal industries in a range of finance-related roles. Juan has a degree in engineering (BS/MS) from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Justin again joins the podcast to provide an insight into the current strategy and outlook for the Ibex Israel fund considering the recent economic environment. Justin is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ibex Investors, an investment firm that focuses on niche and differentiated strategies, primarily through Israeli start-ups and growth companies. Prior to Ibex, Justin worked at Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc, while also serving on the Board of Directors of various non-profits.

During the episode, Justin and David discuss the recent revaluations of fast-growing technology companies around the world and how this has presented great opportunities for the Israel fund. Justin explains the minimal impact that inflation has had on the strategy due to the pricing power that its companies possess. He also compares the current outlook for the public and private markets in Israel, emphasising the fund’s recent focus on publicly listed companies that have had significant revaluations. Justin then highlights the tremendous opportunities that will arise on the private side in the next 6-18 months, when the fund plans to shift its focus toward these companies.

Suzanne joins David to discuss the benefits of using Private Equity in investor portfolios, including the asset class’s performance when compared to their traditional listed equity counterparts.

 Suzanne is a managing director in Alternatives Capital Markets & Strategy (ACMS) within Goldman Sachs Asset Management, serving as global head of Private Equity Strategies. She also serves as global head of Launch With GS, Goldman Sachs’ $1 billion investment strategy grounded in the firm’s data-driven thesis that diverse teams drive strong returns.

 She first joined Goldman Sachs as an analyst in 2001, and rejoined as an associate in 2005 in the AIMS Private Equity Investment team, focusing on secondaries through the AIMS Vintage Funds program. Suzanne was named managing director in 2012.

Adrian again joins the podcast to the discuss the current economic environment and in particular, how it is impacting private debt and Merricks’ Partners Fund. Adrian is the CEO and CIO of Merricks Capital, responsible for the overall running of the business, acting as a group director and Chairman of the Investment Committee. Merricks has an impressive track record and has solidified itself as a leader in the private debt space in Australia.

During the episode, Adrian discusses the current impact on and outlook for the private debt market in an environment of inflation, higher interest rates and a potential recession. He highlights the current valuation issue that exists in Australia, whilst explaining why there is not a simultaneous supply issue. Adrian and David also compare the private debt market in Australia to markets overseas and discuss the advantages that private debt lenders possess in relation to banks. Adrian then gives his outlook for the current development and building industry and how it is likely to play out given rising costs, fixed contracts and a consequent difficulty to deliver profits.

In what has been a challenging quarter for growth companies, fellow Koda Partner Frank Macindoe joins David in another episode of Inside the Rope to provide an update on the recent performance of the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio (KEEP), along with his outlook on markets, broad market concerns such as inflation, the risk-free rate, and company valuations.

Frank highlights the rise of 10-year government bond rates and the implications this move has had on equity markets. He also touches on several companies that he currently likes, and why in his view their share prices don’t accurately reflect the future prospects of their businesses. Finally, Frank and David also cover the areas of the market that Frank is currently finding attractive and those that Frank is pro-actively trying to avoid.

Over the twelve months to 31 May 2022, the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio is down -0.76% compared to the ASX200’s return of 4.84%. Over 10 years though, the reference portfolio has returned 17.42% p.a. compared to the ASX200’s return of 10.36% p.a.

Mark joins David to discuss his career and as well as the origins of L1 Capital that he founded in 2007 alongside Raphael (Rafi) Lamm. Since starting L1’s flagship long short fund, Mark and the L1 team have generated strong outperformance over the index, with the fund returning 26.7% over the past 12 months to May 2022 alone, against the ASX/S&P 200’s 4.8%. Over a longer 7 year period to May 2022, L1’s Long Short Fund has returned 23.5% p.a. against the ASX/S&P 200’s 7.6% p.a.

Mark is a Joint Managing Director & Chief Investment Officer of L1 Capital. Since co-founding L1 Capital in 2007, Mark has jointly managed L1 Capital’s Australian equities strategies including the flagship L1 Capital Long Short Strategy.

Launched in 2014, the Long Short Strategy has delivered net returns of greater than 25% in 6 out of the 7 calendar years it has been running and is the best performing long short fund in Australia since inception (FE Fund Info database).

In a rising rate environment, Chris Joye joins David to discuss where investors should look for returns going forward. Throughout the episode, Chris covers a range of different asset classes, such as Private Debt, Bonds, Property, Equities and Cryptocurrencies.

Chris also touches on how far he expects the RBA to raise rates, and the broader consequences on asset prices such as his expectations of a 15-25% reduction in residential real estate prices as rates continue to rise.

Finally, David and Chris also discuss recent geopolitical events such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as the additional ongoing risks that geopolitical events pose to financial markets and asset prices.

Chris founded Coolabah Capital back in 2011 and is also contributing editor to the AFR. Prior to starting Coolabah, Chris worked at both Goldman Sachs and the RBA.

John joins David again to discuss the current market uncertainty and how Bronte Capital is choosing to invest.

John covers several key topics that are currently being discussed by investors such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the impact China’s Covid-Zero policy is having on supply chains, as well as green technology and the capital expenditure necessary to allow countries to go entirely carbon zero.

Finally, John touches on where Bronte is currently looking for opportunities today, including countries in central and eastern Europe such as Poland.

John has been a financial markets professional since 1999 and is Chief Investment Officer, Founder and co-owner at Bronte. John was Head of Financials at Platinum Asset Management and its youngest partner. After Platinum listed in 2007,

John started Bronte Capital in 2009.

In this special live episode of Inside the Rope, David is joined by Alexandra Clarke (Portfolio Manager at Ellerston Capital), Rhett Kessler (Fund Manager and Principal for Pengana’s Australian Equities Fund) and Phil King (CIO of Regal Funds Management) to discuss the behaviours and traits of successful investors.

Touching on some of the more defining moments of their respective careers, the three panellists cover some of the most challenging markets they have faced to date, as well as where they are seeing opportunities today.

Alex joins David to discuss the Realside Capital Flagship Fund, a fund primarily focused on private debt that has delivered returns to investors of 13.45% over 12 months to December 2021.

Investing across Real Estate, Hotels & Restaurants, Industrials, Financials and Natural Resources; Alex and David discuss the return profiles that investors can expect from such assets going forward, as well as the returns Realside has provided to date.

Alex Hone has more than 20 years of investment experience having worked with leading global firms in both Sydney and London. His experience has included establishing and developing funds management businesses that in turn developed global reputations for investment excellence.

 Alex was previously the founding CEO/CIO of Atrium Investment Management. Prior to this, Alex was a Portfolio Manager with Magellan Financial Group and with Capital Partners (now CP2), a specialist global investment advisory and management firm. Alex commenced his career in the Treasury division of the National Australia Bank.

Ben joins David to discuss Kilara Capital a fund manager that he co-found in 2017 that focuses on investment opportunities that work toward sustainable infrastructure and a zero-carbon future.

Comprising 3 distinct business lines including private equity, energy and infrastructure solutions Kilara invest in deeply sustainable businesses across four key themes including future foods, circular economy, energy transformation and environmental markets. They are project developers and asset managers focused on advancing the build-out of utility scale renewable energy assets alongside the development of bespoke, zero emissions infrastructure solutions to businesses invested in the ‘cooling economy’.

Ben has over 20 years of experience across corporate advisory, legal advisory, commercial transactions and deal structuring in a variety of industry sectors, including renewable energy, commercial property, sustainable finance and environmental markets. He leads the Kilara Growth Fund deal team and is responsible for overall management and strategy across the Kilara Group. Ben sits on the Kilara Growth Fund Investment Committee as an executive member.

Chris joins David to discuss his fund, the 1851 Capital Emerging Companies Fund. Since inception in Feb 2020 till Dec 2021, the fund had produced a compound growth rate of 33% p.a.

Chris explains why he believes that the small-cap sector is the most inefficient part of the market, where fund managers can deliver the largest amount of outperformance to clients. He attributes much of this to the lack of broker coverage when compared to larger-cap counterparts. Chris and David also discuss the methodology that 1851 applies when analysing businesses and their management. Chris identifies the importance of even the smaller details when interviewing senior leadership teams, such as the subtleties of body language.

Working for more than 18 years in the Australian funds management industry, Chris has extensive experience investing in Australian equities. Most recently, Chris was the Chief Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager at Wilson Asset Management Pty Limited (WAM) During his tenure as Chief Investment Officer at WAM, group funds under management (FUM) grew from $300 million to over $3 billion. In 2014, the Australian Financial Review named Chris as one of the Five Best Young Fund Managers in Australia.

In this episode, David is joined by Karl Wellner of Papamarkou Wellner Asset Management, a US firm that provides investment solutions to some of Europe and the United States wealthiest individuals, family offices, endowments, institutions, and foundations.

David and Karl delve into the types of clients that Papamarkou manages, including the issues that they face. He goes on to discuss the relationship process and the “marathon” of investing money on behalf of these clients. Karl also explains some of the different investment opportunities they come across for clients, and how they differ from your traditional “Stocks & Bonds” portfolio.

Karl Wellner joined Papamarkou Wellner Asset Management in 2003 as President and CEO. Mr. Wellner was previously President and CEO of Key Asset Management (USA) Inc. Mr. Wellner is also Founder, partner/shareholder of KAWE Kapital, one of the first members of the Tallinn Stock Exchange in Estonia and one of the larger independent investment management firms in the country.

According to Jeremy Grantham a co-founder of GMO, global warming will be the most important investment issue for the foreseeable future.

In this episode Lucas White (Portfolio Manager of the GMO Climate Change Trust) joins David to discuss their Climate Change strategy’s origins, as well as its objectives and the opportunities going forward. Lucas and the team at GMO believe that climate change is among the most important investment opportunities facing investors today. Their belief is proving correct, with the fund returning 24.37% p.a. over 3 years (USD) to Nov 2021 compared to the MSCI ACWI’s 15.95% p.a. over the same period.

Lucas White is the portfolio manager for the Resources and Climate Change Strategies. He is a member of GMO’s Focused Equity team and a partner of the firm. Previously at GMO, he was engaged in portfolio management for the Global Equity team, including responsibilities for the Quality, Tactical Opportunities, and U.S. Growth Strategies. Prior to joining GMO in 2006, he worked at Standish Mellon Asset Management and MFS. Mr. White earned his B.A. in Economics and Psychology from Duke University. He is a CFA charterholder.

David is joined by Erik Sprinchorn of Tin Fonder’s New Technology fund. The TIN Fonder New Technology fund is an equity strategy that invests in technology, health and digital brands and has been able to generate returns since inception from March 2019 to November 2021 of over 35% p.a.

The fund invests in technology-driven growth companies with a focus on the Nordic region. Tin Fonder started the New Technology strategy with the belief that digital assets will become more valuable in the future. They believe that a mutual fund with innovative companies should be the core rather than the spice of long-term savings.

Erik has worked at TIN Fonder since its inception in February 2019. In recent years, Erik worked at Swedbank Robur with a focus on managing small cap funds, including the Swedbank Robur Ny Teknik fund. Erik has previously worked within equities and portfolio management since 1995 at Swedbank Robur, SEB Enskilda, Alecta and Brummer & Partners.

The Collins St Value Fund has delivered 19.6% p.a. net return since inception in February 2016 to October 2021 – a result which has seen a total net return of almost 180% over that time.

In this episode, Michael joins David to discuss the Collins Street Value Fund and it’s investment strategy. Michael and David highlight the information arbitrage that Collins St seeks to find in the companies that they invest in. From on the ground research in businesses such as Metcash, to undiscovered resource companies from brokers, Michael highlights several examples of outsized returns for investors that can be produced from pockets of mispricing in financial markets.

Michael is a Founder, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager of the Fund. Prior to founding the fund, Michael was a senior portfolio manager at a Melbourne based Managed Investments provider. During his time there he managed portfolios for and advised some of Australia’s largest family offices and high net worth individuals.

Following on from their discussion last quarter, fellow Koda Partner Frank Macindoe joins David in another episode of Inside the Rope to provide an update on the recent performance of the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio (KEEP), along with his outlook on markets, broad market concerns such as inflation, economist forecasts, and company valuations.

Frank flags his concerns regarding the recent strong performance of financial markets, and notes their mean-reverting nature, in which periods of strong performance often preceded periods of mean reversion. Frank highlights the often inaccurate economic forecasts that are distributed throughout the media, however, he does confirm that he has an eye on inflation, and that all positions currently held in the KEEP portfolio are able to pass on any cost pressures to consumers should inflation become persistent.

 Over the twelve months to 30 Sep 2021, the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio is up 38.83% compared to the ASX200’s return of 30.56%. Over 10 years, the reference portfolio has returned 19.91% p.a. compared to the ASX200’s return of 10.79% p.a.

In this episode, Michael joins David to discuss his career and path into investing for purpose. They discuss Michael’s involvement in several investments, including ABC Learning Centres (Now Goodstart Early Learning) that went into liquidation in 2008; as well as the social impacts that were derived from these investments.

As Founding Chief Executive of Social Ventures Australia, an organisation offering innovative solutions to society’s most pressing social problems, Michael is a wealth of knowledge in the impact investment space. He ultimately stepped down as CEO of Social Ventures Australia in October 2014, taking on an Executive Director role.

 Prior to this role, Michael spent 15 years as a Co-Founder and Executive Director of Macquarie Bank’s private equity arm, Macquarie Direct Investment. In his time there, Michael invested in 43 businesses generating a gross rate of return of 32.3%.

 Michael chairs Australia’s largest charitable foundation, the Paul Ramsay Foundation, is a Director of Sunsuper, MH Carnegie & Co., For Purpose Investment Partners, Australian Philanthropic Services and Hearts & Minds Investments and was previously Chair of Goodstart Early Learning.

Adrian joins the podcast again to discuss Merricks Capital’s new agriculture fund. A senior secured loan strategy that provides lending to agricultural assets whilst targeting a return of the RBA’s cash rate + 8% p.a. and sitting in a favourable position in the capital stack.

As Adrian highlights in the episode, Merricks leverages the teams experience in Agricultural loans whilst taking advantage of the banks reduced capacity to lend in this space. As a non-bank lender, Merricks can procure and manage their loans on favourable terms without the need to service their balance sheet as required by banks. With regulators now requiring banks to be more conservative in their leverage, Merricks has the ability to be both patient and flexible with the loans they provide.

 Adrian is the CEO and CIO of Merricks Capital – He has 20+ years of experience across global financial markets including as Head of Pension and Endowment Strategy at Merrill Lynch and Head of Alpha Generation, Global Equities, at Citadel Investment Group. He is responsible for the overall running of the business and is a group director and Chairman of the Investment Committee.

In the special 100th episode of Inside The Rope, David is joined by Hamish Douglass of Magellan. Throughout the episode, Hamish references some of the world’s greatest investors such as Warren Buffet, Benjamin Graham, Phil Fisher and Peter Lynch and discusses the impact these legends have had on Hamish’s own approach to investing. Hamish highlights some of the key behaviours that lead some investors to be successful and offers thoughts on how we can leverage these behaviours throughout our own investing to achieve better outcomes.

 David and Hamish additionally discuss Hamish’s stance on cryptocurrencies, and reflect on Hamish’s previous prediction that it is inevitable Bitcoin will go to zero. Lastly, Hamish shares his current view on the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as his thoughts on the potential impact of inflation on financial markets.

 Hamish Douglass is Co-Founder, Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of Magellan Financial Group, and Lead Portfolio Manager of Magellan’s Global Equity strategies. Hamish is a former member of the Australian government’s Financial Literacy Board, the Australian government’s Takeovers Panel, the Australian government’s Foreign Investment Review Board and the Forum of Young Global Leaders – World Economic Forum. Hamish is a Director of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute.

In this episode, David is joined by Phil Green of The Alceon Group. Phil is generous in sharing his learnings over the years, including that as a CEO of Babcock & Brown, & now as a Founder of Alceon.

Phil Green has over 30 years of experience specialising in structured finance and advisory, leasing, asset based financing, principal investment and funds management. Phil has extensive expertise in property, financial assets, infrastructure and other forms of asset backed finance including aircraft, rail and mortgages.

Prior to joining Alceon, Phil was a partner of Babcock & Brown for 24 years and was appointed as Chief Executive Officer on its listing in 2004. Before joining Babcock & Brown he worked for Arthur Andersen specialising in taxation, cross border leasing and structured finance.

Phil holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Law degrees from the University of NSW, is a Chartered Accountant and was admitted as a solicitor in NSW in 1978. 

David speaks with Andrew Rado, Managing Director & CIO of Longreach Maris. A strategy that aims to provide an ecologically sustainable investment by delivering a robust alternative income stream, through scalable investment in the wild-caught fisheries Individual Transferrable Quota (ITQ) sector.

The total market capitalisation of Australia’s ITQs is estimated to be approximately A$22 billion, with the Australian wild-caught fishing industry a lucrative sector that operates within a highly regulated and sustainably managed framework. Individual fisheries are managed under a long-established quota system to achieve key sustainability and fishery industry management objectives.

Andrew has over 20 years experience as a Seafood and Agri executive, with extensive large-scale seafood industry, processing, export and strategic restructure and financial turnaround experience, within the Australian wild-caught seafood sector. He holds a PhD from Murdoch University and an MBA from UWA.

David speaks with Tim King of Melior. Melior was established in 2018 by Lucy Steed and Tim King with backing from the founders of Adamantem Capital, Rob Koczkar and Anthony Kerwick. After scanning the market, they saw a gap for an Australian equities impact investment manager. They have formed a team of experienced investment professionals who share a common goal – to be part of the change they want to see in the world.

Tim co-founded Melior and is the Chief Investment Officer (CIO). He has worked in capital markets for more than 20 years and has over a decade of experience in ESG research. Tim was Head of Company & ESG Research for Colonial First State Global Asset Management’s Australian Equities Core Fund from 2016 to 2018. Prior to this he was Head of Advisory for governance research firm Regnan and Head of Company & ESG Research for Deutsche Bank from 2003 -2013. He was also a top 3 rated sell side analyst.

Beryl Capital is a strategy run by David Witkin that has typically invested in merger arbitrage opportunities. This strategy has delivered investors net returns over 20% p.a. since inception in June 2011 to March 2021.

However, David joins the podcast again to discuss the strategies transition towards also investing in SPACS – Special-Purpose Acquisition Companies. He touches on what a SPAC is, the structure of the deals, the potential risks and the potential upsides.

David is a 2001 graduate of Harvard University magna c*m laude in Economics, whose senior thesis was about merger arbitrage. His merger arbitrage career started in 1998 when he left college for one year to work on the arbitrage desk at Bear Stearns & Co., Inc. Mr. Witkin worked as a merger arbitrage analyst at Bear Stearns, Mason Capital Management, Citigroup Alternative Investments and Hayground Cove Asset Management before managing his own money in 2009 and his first outside capital in 2011.

Following on from their discussion late last year (2020), fellow Koda Partner Frank Macindoe joins David in another episode of Inside the Rope to provide an update on the recent performance of the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio (KEEP), along with his outlook on markets, specific sectors and the ongoing discussion regarding value vs growth.

Frank and David touch on the trends that helped provide this return, as well as how Frank is thinking about markets at the moment. Frank and David also delve deeper into the investment thesis behind infrastructure assets such as airports, as well as the implications of COVID and their broader outlook going forward.

Over the twelve months to 31 March 2021, the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio is up 59.76% compared to the ASX200’s return of 37.47%. Over 3 years, the reference portfolio has returned 18.58% p.a. compared to the ASX200’s return of 9.64% p.a.

Producing annualized returns of 23.33% p.a. since inception May 2013 to Feb 2021, the Arnott Opportunities Fund has outperformed the MSCI by over 15% p.a.; and in this episode, David and Kenny discuss both the evolution of Arnott Capital and the approach taken by the team to generate such ‘asymmetric returns’. That is, in Kenny’s words “Finding ideas with a lot of upside and not a lot of downside”.

Kenny Arnott has thirty years experience in equity and commodity markets. Prior to founding Arnott Capital, Kenny was at Macquarie Bank from 1994-99 in the Commodity and Equities Group as a derivative trader. From 1990-94 he was at Dunavant Enterprises, employed as a commodity trader. Dunavant Enterprise at the time was the largest cotton trading firm globally.

Arnott Capital is a boutique absolute return fund manager founded in 1999, by Kenny Arnott, with the vision of delivering Asymmetric returns for investors. The firm is solely owned by staff and is a significant investor in the strategy alongside external investors.

John comes back onto Inside The Rope to highlight his views of the market, including the current volatility and headline-grabbing trades such as the Gamestop short squeeze; alongside other areas of the market that John believes could be in, or heading towards bubble territory.

He and David also discuss recent market performance and retail inflows into financial markets which John refers to as “Mass Mania”, causing valuations of companies to move into areas that would have never been previously forecast creating bubble-like conditions.

John has been a financial markets professional since 1999 and is Chief Investment Officer, Founder and co-owner at Bronte.

John was Head of Financials at Platinum Asset Management and its youngest partner. After Platinum listed in 2007, John started Bronte Capital in 2009.

In this episode, David speaks with Chris about his current roles and background to date, in addition to how to pick fund managers along with how investors can use financial returns to support charitable causes and begin their philanthropic journey.

Commencing his career as a chartered accountant, Chris Cuffe entered the funds management industry in 1985. In 1988 he joined Colonial First State where he was CEO from 1990 until 2003. In 2003 he became CEO of the listed Challenger Group.

Chris is now involved in a portfolio of activities in the investment and non-profit sectors which include:

– Member of the Investment Committee of UniSuper, which provides superannuation services to employees of Australia’s higher education and research sector;

– Chairman of Australian Philanthropic Services and Atrium Investment Management;

– Director of various listed companies including Global Value Fund, Antipodes Global Investment Company, Argo Investments and Class; and

– Founder, directors and manager of Third Link Growth Fund.

Steve Tucker former CEO of MLC, and current Koda Capital Chairman joins David in this episode to discuss the evolution of advice and the importance it carries for high net worth individuals. Steve and David also touch on the transition from vertically integrated financial advice business models into the independent advice firms of today.

As Chief Executive Officer of MLC until 2013, Steve was responsible for all of NAB’s Wealth businesses including MLC, NAB Private Wealth, and JBWere, with combined revenues exceeding $1bn per annum and over 5,000 staff.

Steve has extensive financial and investment advice experience and has been a vocal and effective champion of reform and cultural transformation within the wealth management industry. Additionally, he is a director of the Banking and Finance Oath, and the chairman of Urbis.

Rajeev Gupta of the Alium Alpha Fund joins David to discuss his career to date, the history of the Alium Alpha Fund, and the businesses that it invests in.

In what Raj calls a “Crossover Fund”, he explains how the Alium Alpha fund focuses on investing in both private & public companies; with a particular focus on providing later-stage funding to Technology & Innovative companies intending to list on the ASX in the future. The fund targets an annualized return of 20-25%.

Rajeev has 20 years of experience analysing, investing & building technology companies. Rajeev began his investment career at Goldman Sachs, where he worked for almost a decade in the investment group in Hong Kong, Singapore & New York with a focus on listed & unlisted technology companies. Rajeev then utilised his technology investment experience as a portfolio manager at both Tribeca & Merricks Capital where he ran global technology funds. He then built his own 25-person technology startup called Geckolife, before establishing Alium Capital. Rajeev has an Honours degree in Finance & Econometrics from the University of Sydney.

Richard Quin of Bentham joins David to discuss the history of Bentham Asset Management, including its spin-off from Credit Suisse, along with the various credit strategies that it manages today.

Bentham Asset Management is a specialist global fixed interest and credit investment manager. Bentham actively manages a number of high yielding funds with varying risk profiles. The portfolios are designed to generate income while diversifying risk in global credit markets.

Richard Quin is the CIO & Principal for Bentham Asset Management. Prior to this, he was a Director and Head of the APAC division of the Credit Investment Group for Credit Suisse Alternative Investments. Richard spent nine years within the Credit Suisse Asset Management (CSAM) fixed income team as a Credit Portfolio Manager, where he established and managed Bentham’s current high yield, global income and syndicated loan funds.

Justin joins David again to provide an update on the Ibex Israel strategy, a strategy that has returned 13.4% to the year ending November 2020 (in USD).

Justin and David discuss the impact of COVID on Israeli companies, along with the restrictions on foreign investment and the opportunities that this provides.

Justin also touches on the opportunities being found across the Israeli Technology sector, such as cyber and enterprise technologies; along with the acceleration of their adoption as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Justin is the Founder and Managing Partner at Ibex Investors, a Denver-based investment firm. Prior to Ibex, Justin worked at Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. in both the private equity and investment banking groups in New York and London. Justin has served on the Board of Directors of several non-profits including the Anti-Defamation League and Colorado Public Radio.

David speaks with Paul Bassat of Square Peg Capital, a firm that invests in early-stage technology companies across Australia, Israel and South-East Asia, such as Canva, Fiverr & Athena Home Loans. Before starting Square Peg, Paul was a corporate lawyer who went on to achieve well-known success in founding Seek, the marketplace and HR company, a company that now employs more than 1,000 people in Australia and over 10,000 people around the world. Square Peg was launched in 2012 to fill the void in the Australian venture capital space. At the time of launch, there were minimal venture capital funds in Australia, however, there was a growing abundance of impressive entrepreneurs starting influential businesses that needed support. Since then, Square Peg has invested in around 40 companies and has between $1.4 and $1.5bn in funds under management. They are currently in the process of closing their 4th fund.

In this episode, David speaks with Chris Andrews, the Chief Investment Officer at La Trobe Financial. La Trobe Financial manages a book of mortgage-backed loans on behalf of investors aiming to receive returns over those provided by traditional cash alternatives in exchange for an acceptable level of risk. David and Chris discuss La Trobe’s flagship product the 12-month term account, which as at the 24th of November, offers investors a return of 4.35% p.a. net of all fees. This $3.5bn strategy is comprised of over 6,000 first ranking secured mortgages across Australia with a maximum LVR of 75% and as at the 24th November has an average LVR of 63%. Since its inception in 2002, the strategy has not lost any investor’s capital. As Chief Investment Officer at La Trobe, Chris oversees $12bn of investment opportunities each year, of which La Trobe settles approximately $5.5bn to 6bn whilst maintaining a strict level of discipline.

John comes back onto Inside The Rope to revisit COVID-19 and discuss the things that he believes Bronte Capital miscalculated at the beginning of the pandemic, along with what else they could have done better. He and David also discuss how society measures the risk vs reward benefit of returning to normal activities in light of COVID-19, along with how that is relevant from the perspective of investing in financial markets. John also highlights some of Bronte’s latest investments, which John places all in the “value bucket”. Over the last decade, John believes that most of the underperformance of value investing can be attributed to rapid changes such as the internet which have swept the world. Finally, John discusses Bronte’s latest position in Tobacco, and whilst not shying away from the potential risks, he highlights the opportunities he believes it presents.

David and George discuss how investors can invest ethically in the fixed income space. Impact investing allows investors to not only generate a financial return but also contribute positively to society and/or the environment. In George’s words, impact investing is the way of the future. The Regnan Credit Impact Trust is a strategy which aims to deliver returns of 1-3% pa over a rolling 3 year period whilst investing in opportunities that are assessed on both Regnan’s ESG and MSCI sustainability analytics. The strategy has an active tilt towards green (ie climate), social and sustainability bonds — all of which support positive societal and/or environmental outcomes (including the advancement of UN’s Sustainable Development Goals).

Dr Craig Collie of Regal Funds Management joins David on this episode of Inside the Rope to discuss his career to date, starting as a medical doctor in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom before transitioning into financial services and ultimately his role at Regal. Craig manages a sleeve of Regal’s Market Neutral strategy, being long-short global healthcare and more recently a sleeve of Regal’s listed investment trust. These sleeves have a diverse universe of global stocks, with holdings in pre-revenue biotech, medical device, hospital, lab provider and health insurance companies. David and Craig also touch on COVID-19 and in particular the process behind developing a vaccine as well as the associated economic outcomes of being successful in doing so.

In this episode, David chats with Rob Morrison from Barwon Investment Partners to discuss the Barwon Healthcare Property Fund. In seeking to identify areas of the property market that Rob believes are under-researched, Barwon found that the healthcare sector had lower levels of institutional investment despite its fast growth and 10% allocation to Australian GDP. As a result, establishing a Healthcare Property Fund has allowed Barwon to provide investors with income returns of over 7% p.a. combined with additional capital growth over 1% p.a since inception in October 2014 to March 2020. Founded in 2006, after Rob’s time at AMP, Barwon concentrates on both property & private equity. Barwon has strategies in Healthcare property, property finance with a focus on first mortgages & global strategies (Listed private equity & listed private debt).

Since launching Inside The Rope three years ago, David has been able to chat with some of the industry leaders in financial services. In this special episode of Inside the Rope, CEO of Koda Capital Paul Heath interviews David to discuss his observations over these three years. David takes time to reflect on many of the episodes that he has conducted, including those with famed investors such as Hamish Douglass, Phil King & John Hempton. Covering their similarities and differences, Paul and David touch on the identifiable traits that appear to allow investors to be successful, along with some of the key takeaways for listeners of the podcast. David and Paul also discuss David’s career to date, beginning as an analyst before becoming a director of Clark Pacific Financial Services and ultimately a Partner at Koda Capital.

Fellow Koda Partner Frank Macindoe joins David in the latest episode of Inside the Rope to discuss his extensive career in both commercial law and financial advice, as well as the success he has achieved as an avid investor in Australian equities. Within their conversation, Frank gives an overview of the diversified portfolio of Australian equities that he manages. This portfolio (the Koda Enduring Equities Portfolio, also known as ‘KEEP’) aims to invest in strong businesses with a focus on long term value creation and capital preservation, and has significantly outperformed the index since inception 12 years ago. Frank and David also cover the importance of the term “enduring” and why it is relevant for the holdings within the portfolio. Frank began his career in law and worked as a commercial lawyer for 20 years before eventually following his long-standing passion for investing and shifting to financial advice.

In episode #73 of the Inside the Rope podcast Koda Adviser & Partner David Clark speaks with Lindsay Partridge AM, Managing Director at Brickworks Building Products. Brickworks is one of the world’s largest building supply manufacturers, and they have additionally grown to include a Land & Development division that maximises the value of surplus land created by their building products business. Lindsay outlines the firm’s origin and strategy, and also discusses its large investment in Washington H. Soul Pattinson that seeks to stabilise the returns from the more volatile parts of the Brickworks business. Brickworks is a diversified company that began in 1934 as a brick manufacturer. The firm listed on the ASX in 1961 and now has a market capitalisation of $2.2bn with over 1,400 employees.

Kerry joins David to discuss impact investing, and his career in financial markets. Throughout the episode, Kerry and David discuss and define what impact investing is, the framework used by the team at Inspire Impact and the key differences to ethical (ESG) investments. Kerry is a Partner at Inspire Impact, a profit for purpose organisation that connects capital to social entrepreneurs. Inspire Impact invest in and advise purpose-driven businesses, assisting them to generate meaningful return to investors while preserving their socially and environmentally minded DNA. Kerry has advised or invested in equities since 1992 and his experience includes a number of senior roles. In 1999, he co-founded Perennial Investment Partners, which achieved strong investment performance and reached $20bn in asset under management within 8 years.

Anthony Millet from Antler joins David to discuss early-stage venture capital. Antler receives 50,000 applications a year to their programs around the world and spends over 200 hours with each team ultimately resulting in Antler investing in over 160+ companies. Over the past year since launch, the fund has delivered investors returns of 34%. Anthony and David discuss how Antler discover successful businesses, ideas and entrepreneurs. As well as how they cultivate the ideas and help the founders develop successful businesses from day one. Anthony also discusses his previous ventures such as BrickX, allowing investors to access residential property investments without the barriers which normally preclude them from doing so.

Managing a credit portfolio across several asset-backed loans (and previously corporate loans), James and the team at Aquasia’s enhanced credit fund have returned 6.76% p.a. since inception (October 2011). However March saw the fund have its first negative month, as the fear of COVID-19 saw credit spreads widen and valuations shift. As James highlights, this isn’t necessarily a reflection on the assets themselves or an immediate decrease in quality, but more so the price that investors are willing to pay for assets. James and David discuss the differences between the COVID-19 pandemic and the Global Financial Crisis, with James highlighting the structural causes of the GFC against the temporary economic damages caused by COVID-19 and the global government interventions. James also explains the stimulus provided by governments to bridge the gap to an eventual COVID-19 solution, the impact of hardship on property prices and the flow-on effect to other asset prices.

Delivering returns whilst providing impact, Cullen joins David to discuss the Kilter Rural impact investments. Since 1993 Cullen has been working in the farmland and water management sector. While holding a strong grounding in active, hands-on land management, at a strategic level Cullen holds experience in the development of priorities for investment at both catchment and state levels in Victoria. Cullen went on to establish Kilter Rural in 2004 as a vehicle for investment in sustainably managed farmland and water assets. Kilter Rural is a specialist manager, dedicated to investment in Australian real assets of farmland, water and ecosystem services. The economic fundamentals of investing in these assets are underpinned by demand and supply of food and fibre to a growing world population.

What makes for a quality government bond portfolio, and why should investors be attracted to them? In this episode, Charlie and David discuss the benefits of high-quality government bonds in what Jamieson Coote say can help defend and protect investors portfolios by providing income, liquidity and downside protection in a period of heightened volatility. Jamieson Coote Bonds managed approximately $5.25bn in assets before the COVID-19 Crisis whilst delivering returns of 7.64% over the last 12 months to April 2020 in its domestic fund. Referencing August of last year when Swiss government bonds were yielding minus 1.1%, yet the total return of the relevant index year to date at that time was 14.5%, Charlie highlights the potentially ‘eye-watering’ returns that can still present themselves while bond yields are negative.

Delivering returns of 13.38% over the past 6 months (to May 2020), Daniel from Alceon chats with David. Daniel and David discuss the Alceon High Conviction Absolute Return Fund, and dig into how Daniel thinks about running the absolute return focused strategy. The fund, which takes a fundamental, research-driven, high conviction approach in a benchmark unaware fashion, has delivered returns of 13.38% over the past 6 months (to May 2020 and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic). Having run successful positions in NextDC (NXT), Wisr (WZR), Getswift (GSW) & Bingo Industries (BIN), Daniel outlines some of the approaches taken by the team at Alceon that have allowed them to capitalise on identified opportunities. Daniel also highlights the team’s agility and readiness to make tactical changes as necessary — and gives specific examples of each from recent years.

Having an IRR of 26.4% across all transactions in property, Adam Murchie joins David on this episode of Inside the Rope. Adam is a specialist in funds management and investment and has worked in the property industry for 20 years. He and David discuss the strategies deployed by the team at Forza as they aim to provide investors with the best property investments possible based on their risk and return appetite. In this episode, Adam and David discuss the impacts of COVID-19 on property as an asset class as well as the future of office dynamics and work from home arrangements. Additionally, with COVID in mind, Adam highlights some of the successes Forza have had in periods of difficulty and explains their preference for ‘messy’ markets where he believes they are able to find good assets that are heavily discounted relative to their risk. Since inception to June 2020, Forza Capital has achieved an IRR on completed transactions of 26.4% net of all costs.

Regal Small Companies fund has returned 18.4% p.a. (as at April 2020) since inception (Feb 2015). As part of the COVID-19 Special Episodes, David chats with Phil King of Regal Funds Management. Late last year when David last spoke with Phil, Phil believed that it was a great time to invest. However, throughout this episode, Phil argues that it’s important investors change their portfolios as the facts change. Investors should constantly ask themselves, “Is my thesis still valid?”, and as we have seen, Covid-19 has largely disrupted everyone’s thesis. Despite the recent bounce in markets, Phil thinks that it will be a while before we see the true bull market return, however, he highlights the opportunities presenting themselves in the small to mid-cap space of Australian equities compared to the traditional high yielding value traps that many Australians have typically favoured. Since inception (Feb 2015) the Regal Small Companies fund has returned 18.4% p.a. (as at April 2020).

How has COVID-19 affected property? In this episode, Chris and David discuss the impact of COVID-19 on property asset prices. Chris is a portfolio manager for the Quay Global Real Estate Fund. The fund itself has returned 11.7% p.a. since inception in July 2014 till March 2020. Post-March the global REIT market has not recovered to the same extent as global equities. Chris puts this down to the number of sectors within real estate that are socially driven. This includes Retail, Office/Commercial, Hotels and Hospitality. As these sectors see reduced activity from the impact of COVID-19, we are seeing overall REIT indices weighed down significantly when compared to equities. Chris and David also discuss the dislocation that has risen from the COVID crisis as a result of people working from home, leading businesses to renew their perceptions on such arrangements and the ongoing cost of office workspaces.

Magellan Global has returned 14.78% over 1 year to the 31st of March 2020. In what Hamish calls a classic Black Swan event, he and David discuss the recent impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across global financial markets. Initially presenting as a localized epidemic in China, COVID-19 has evolved into a global pandemic that has wreaked havoc on financial markets around the world. Despite there being no modern rule book on how to navigate investments during the pandemic, Magellan’s Global Fund has held relatively strong. Hamish attributes this to a lower-risk portfolio that was built to withstand such unforeseen ‘Black Swan’ events and elaborates on the additional measures that the Magellan team have taken to further protect downside risks. By example, the Magellan Global Fund has increased cash levels from 6% to over 15% during March till now. Hamish remains cautious of events that may unfold over the coming months and discusses the key indicators that he believes are necessary to reduce financial market risks and allow investors to determine the shape of recovery that they can expect.

The Totus Capital Alpha Fund is up 9% CYTD for 2020, during a period when global equity markets have rerated significantly. Throughout the episode, Ben discusses the opportunities he believes are being created in markets, and the short term trends that have been created by the virus. Similar to our previous guest John Hempton, Ben argues that this is a virus issue at its core which cannot be solved through central bank intervention. Ben also discusses the ongoing management of Totus’ book, which may contain circa 80 shorts and 40 longs on any given day. As well as his outlook on BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) platforms, proposed rental concessions and other impacts across the different age demographics. The Totus Alpha fund has been running since 2012, and up to the end of Feb 2020 has returned 17.4% p.a. (net of all fees).

Alium Market Neutral returned 7.2% in March. Martin Rosser joins the podcast again to discuss how the Alium Market Neutral Fund has been able to generate positive returns during the COVID-19 pandemic. By identifying early market trends such as growth in the share price of “In-Home” businesses as events transpired in places such as Hong Kong, Martin and the team were able to make sensible investments before COVID-19’s growth accelerated throughout Australia and the rest of the world. The team also shorted areas such as discretionary spending and travel which have provided additional levels of alpha and positive returns. During March 2020, the Alium Market Neutral fund was able to generate estimated returns of 7.2%, and targets returns of 10-15% p.a. throughout the cycle.

The Ophir Opportunities Fund has returned 26.1% p.a. since inception in August 2012 (net of fees) and their latest Global Opportunities Fund has returned 33.8% p.a. since inception in October 2018 (net of fees). Andrew attributes the success of Ophir’s funds to their commitment of keeping their finger on the pulse, travelling a lot, meeting companies, learning from their mistakes and creating a strong alignment of interests between the team and their funds. In Andrew’s words “I do not own a couch, I don’t own cushions on a couch, I don’t even own a bed. I own sheets, I own pillows, I own cutlery, I own clothes and I own a lot of units in the Ophir funds.”

Deriving uncorrelated returns to traditional asset classes, as at January 2020 the Argyle Water Fund has returned 19.1% p.a. since inception (2012) by investing in water rights across Australia. Returning to the podcast for a second time, Kim joins David to discuss the fund’s change in banner from Bluesky to Argyle along with other topics such as the recent bushfire crisis that has been ongoing across Australia, as well as the impact of different climate conditions on Australia’s water supply. A vast majority of the Fund’s capital is exposed to the river systems of the southern Murray-Darling Basin including the Murray, Goulburn, Murrumbidgee and Lachlan.

Investing in growth opportunities that present themselves as emerging winners, Jeff backs the individuals behind what he identifies as a successful business. He is well known as an early backer of both Magellan Financial Group (MFG) and Goodman Group (GMG) and his fund is currently the largest shareholder of Pointsbet (PBH). With the firm belief that everything you do in life makes you a better investor, Jeff highlights how the experiences he has gained throughout his career as an accountant and as a top-rated equities analyst who became the Head of Equities at UBS in Sydney has provided him with the foundation upon which he invests. EFM Asset Management is a growth oriented global equities asset manager that specialises in managing listed global equities and has a particular focus on quality growth investments.

Chris joins David in this special episode to discuss the Coronavirus, housing markets, private debt and LIC stamping fees. Chris is of the view that the increased market volatility presents opportunities for investors, however they must be cautious. He highlights the implications on financial markets posed by Coronavirus and speculates that whilst the Chinese may surprise with an early vaccine we should conservatively assume that it will be 12+ months away. Given this and current market expectations, Chris believes that the RBA will likely cut the cash rate by 25bp in April and will begin QE in a matter of time… and as it’s almost Un-Australian to discuss cash rates without a mention of property, Chris is expecting Australian property prices to rise anywhere from 20% to 30% throughout the cycle (trough to peak, including the 10%+ we have already seen) but believes that an inflationary cycle could see them rapidly rerate down by up to 40%.

In John Hempton’s eyes, what is occurring in financial markets is not an economic problem that can be solved through central bank stimulus. It’s a virus problem, and as a virus problem, it can only be solved through scientific intervention such as vaccines. John believes that the measures taken by central banks may cause more harm than good and that over the next 4 weeks we will see COVID-19 tip its hand to show us the full extent of its impact. In this special episode of Inside the Rope, David joins John Hempton of Bronte Capital to discuss both the health and economic implications that Coronavirus may have on the world and financial markets. Bronte was one of a few global equity managers to profit in February through the addition of downside market protection, in a time when volatility was priced at less than a quarter of what it is now trading at. However, aside from the health implications and recent volatility in financial markets, John doesn’t think it changes much for investors that are sensibly invested. His recommendation to such investors, sit it out.

Adrian runs the Merricks Capital Partners Fund, a fund that provides senior asset secured debt to real estate, agriculture & occasionally infrastructure. The fund has provided investors with consistent returns of 12% p.a. net of fees (as at Feb 2020) with relatively low levels of volatility and an overall loan to value ratio of less than 60%. Throughout the episode, Adrian discusses the impact of COVID-19 including the fund’s recent performance and uplift throughout March, which was amplified by the fund’s hedge in credit default swaps. These swaps which were incorporated at a relatively low cost, have provided investors with downside protection against both economic meltdowns & liquidity crises. Adrian believes that these swaps will continue to provide protection should financial markets further deteriorate.

Targeting what Roger refers to as 7/11 (7% income and 4% growth), Palisade’s Diversified Infrastructure Fund has returned 10.2% p.a. over the last 10 years (as at 30 June 2019). Roger defines infrastructure as a defensive asset that is essential for the community, and in this episode, Roger and I discuss how Palisade are finding such assets across Australia. Roger also takes the time to highlight the importance of such assets to Australia and consequently why he believes infrastructure is a defensive asset class. Palisade which began under the Perpetual banner is the owner of assets such as the Sunshine Coast Airport, the fastest growing airport in Australia and specializes in defensive infrastructure assets.

Tim Carleton from Auscap joins the podcast for a second time to discuss his new Global Equities Fund as well as the recent performance of the Long Short Australian Equities Fund. Currently invested in names such as Capri, Google (Alphabet), Microsoft and Visa, the new Auscap Global Equities Fund is an absolute return focused fund that targets high-quality value stocks. Tim highlights that the fund has a bias towards both developed markets and well known large-cap stocks with firm levels of governance. The fund which also has the ability to short similar to the Australian Equities Fund targets 10-15% annualised return opportunities for each company that it invests in. Tim also touches on both the recent performance and opportunities in the Long Short Australian Equities Fund. Following a difficult year in 2018 and a recovery for the fund in 2019, Tim is bullish on the outlook of the Australian economy, with indicators such as unemployment rates, terms of trade surplusses and high commodity prices supporting his view.

Sometimes presents that may be perceived as “boring” can eventuate into the most exciting gifts that you have received. The Magellan Infrastructure Fund invests in listed assets with exposure to sectors such as toll roads, airports, rail and utilities. Gerald describes these assets as highly reliable, predictable and boring. However, Gerald and I discuss how investing in such assets has allowed the fund to return 20% during the last 12 months and generate returns of over 14% p.a. during the last 10 years (as of November 2019). Gerald mentions that the fund is not designed for individuals to get rich quick, but rather to generate wealth with a high degree of confidence. The fund targets long term returns of inflation + 5%, with low downside capture. The Magellan Infrastructure Fund manages around $8.5bn and is invested in listed infrastructure assets around the world.

Kee explains how property assets with yields of 7-9% are being found across the UK as Brexit fears have reduced competition for certain assets. Kee also covers the UK election and what it means for their property market. L1 UK Residential Property Funds focus on assets with purchase prices of £3-10m a bracket that is separate to that of large institutions who typically target assets of greater value. The fund invests in tier one cities outside of London and South-East England where valuations are only now reaching the same levels as ’07. Competition in the UK is further reduced as banks are limited in their ability to invest in similar assets, in part due to the EU Mortgage Market Review. Kee mentions that tighter lending controls have meant that 68% of individuals in the UK that are renting don’t own a home because they can’t afford the deposit.

Are the big Australian banks value traps? As the disparity in valuations between value and growth stocks widen, Rhett and I discuss why. The impact of technological disruption has seen several growth stock multiples stretch well beyond traditional valuation methods, and Rhett believes that there are more rational returns to be found in less favoured companies such as Telstra and Viva Energy. The Pengana Australian Equities Fund is an absolute return focused fund that aims to deliver returns of 6% greater than the risk-free rate throughout the cycle. Since inception in June 2008, the fund has returned 10.23% p.a. as at October 2019.

Equity like returns with debt like risk; Metrics Managing Partner Andrew Lockhart discusses the opportunity created by traditional lenders leaving the Australian market due to increasing levels of regulation. The Metrics Credit Partners Fund offers investors direct exposure to Australia’s bank-dominated mid-market corporate loan market by investing in loans to private corporates, private-equity sponsored, real estate and structured finance borrowers.

With the Regal small-cap fund up over 70% CYTD (as at 30 Sept 2019), Phil and I talk the good, the bad & the ugly of financial markets. Phil remains optimistic that there is plenty of growth left in the market, and in this episode he steps through his rationale underpinning this view.

Investing through the cycle and targeting 10-15% returns net of fees is Alium’s focus, and in this episode Martin explains how Alium is able to accomplish this. The Alium Market Neutral strategy is an alternate strategy that utilizes both long and short positions globally with a thematic based approach. Martin describes how his strategy operates differently to traditional market-neutral strategies that utilise a sector-based approach. From inception in May 2017 through August 2019, the fund has not produced a negative year.

In what has proven to be a difficult period for Tribeca, Ben and I discuss the reasons for the fund’s underperformance and how Tribeca is positioned to perform going forward. Ben has worked in the natural resource sector for over 15 years and founded Tribeca Global Natural Resources in 2015.

Recently I toured Israel with Koda Partner Will Douglas and Ibex Investors to gain insights into the Ibex Israel investment fund. On the four day tour we visited a range of investee companies and spent time with economists, industry representatives, start-up incubators, academics and other investors in the fund. In this episode, we discuss the Israel tour and the opportunities that Israel presents for investors. Will is an Adviser & Partner based in the Koda Brisbane office.

Rugby World Cup winning captain and captain of industry David Kirk discusses Bailador, his ASX listed technology investment company.

Lending money to countries such as Zimbabwe requires skill, knowledge, and experience. Stephen discusses how Global Evolution has become a global leader in managing frontier debt with over $9 billion of investors’ money. The frontier market strategy has produced an annualised return of 8.6% since its inception in 2010. The fund identifies opportunistic early-stage macroeconomic and political developments.

Equity-like returns with debt like risk. Nelson Yuan of PIMCO discusses how they use their global footprint to find attractive opportunities in credit.

International and Technology investment with Hamish Douglass Hamish Douglass is Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Magellan Financial Group, and Lead Portfolio Manager of Magellan’s Global Equity strategies. Hamish is a former member of the Australian Government’s Financial Literacy Board, the Australian Government’s Takeovers Panel, the Australian Government’s Foreign Investment Review Board and the Forum of Young Global Leaders – World Economic Forum.

We discuss the opportunity to invest in high growth companies in Isreal with the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Ibex Investors.

Investment Fundamentals with Rhett Kessler Rhett Kessler manages the Pengana Australian Equities Fund of $1.2 billion that has returned to clients greater than 11% p.a. net since inception. In this episode, Rhett takes us through the process and the way he thinks when he approaches investment.

Managing significant wealth over multiple generations raises many significant challenges. These issues are discussed with Tiffiany who is a thought leader in the Family Leadership space. Tiffany brings a great skill set and expiernce to help families get ‘back around the kitchen table”.

Catherine D Wood is the CEO and CIO of Ark invest a New York-based investment manager focussed on disruptive innovation. In this episode, we cover Bitcoin, Driverless cars and other disruptive technologies that may shape our investment future. https://ark-invest.com/ark-team

James McNab is the Manager of Acquasia fixed interest funds. Aquasia manages wholesale funds and syndicates, investing in a range of credit and fixed-income assets. http://www.aquasia.com.au/james-mcnabb

Dr John Cummins (https://goo.gl/u8ikNw) is a specialist physician who started a practice devoted to preventative medicine. In this episode, Dr John talks about how you can manage your health and lifestyle to live to 100.

Episode 8: House Prices and Interest rates with Brett Gillespie Brett talks about his view on the outlook for house prices and interest rates and what will drive them. I reached out to Brett to arrange the interview after reading his article Burning down the House (https://ellerstoncapital.com/burning-house-latest-thought-piece-brett-gillespie)

Tim is a founder and Portfolio Manager with Auscap Asset Management an asset manager with an annualised return of more than 20%. We discuss a wide range of topics including investment fundamentals, Bitcoin, China and how shorting companies can enhance returns with Tim.

We explore the way Ben invests, along with a number of themes that have led Totus to return greater than 21% p.a. since setting up the fund in 2012

As the co-founder of Dalton Street Capital Alan invests clients money using algorithm that exploits behaviours in the market to generate returns for investors. Since inception Dalton Street Capital has returned 19.9% p.a.

The recently announced CEO and CIO of the $27 billion manager talks about managing money for the past 23 years and how peoples behaviour creates opportunities to profit. Andrew also gives his views on the international investment landscape including China, the USA and Europe.

We talk with Ibex analyst Ben Hirsch-McShane about the future of transportation and the economic opportunities presented by the adoption of driverless vehicles

Chris discusses the opportunities that are presented by investing in US microcaps a strategy that has produced 15.3% p.a return since inception in 2014. We touch on the benefit being provided to US smaller companies by the Trump administration’s lower taxes and deregulation.

We discuss investing in the private debt provided to medium sized business and how the big banks exiting this market has created an opportunity for investors provided they get their credit analysis right and of course have a good loan agreement. The strategy is expected to produce more than 12% income p.a.

We talk to Robert about the current opportunity to earn double digit returns by investing in UK residential Property.

As a world leader in Impact Investing, Michael talks to us about the growing trend of investing for the dual purpose of profit and social benefit.

We discuss with Dan How Solus invests in event driven, and special situations to create a strategy that has provided an annual return of 12.71% over the last 5 years with low volatility and low correlation to traditional asset classes such as shares.

Following our previous Podcast with the very impressive leader of Ark Invest, we discuss the opportunities being presented by 3D printing and the genomic revolution amongst other disruptive technologies changing the world.

As a founder of the impressive Fermat Capital Management, Nelson discusses how they invest in non traditional fixed income such as Insurance Linked Bonds to create a risk premium greater than similar non-correlated assets.

Liquidity events are a major fork in the road. Paul Heath draws on his experience as CEO of Koda and previously JB Were to discuss the do’s and don’ts of managing liquidity events.

We talk to David about investing in companies where Mergers and Acquisitions are announced and how the strategy can produce good returns that are uncorrelated to traditional assets.

The growth of Exchange Traded Funds over the last 10 years post the GFC has been phenomenal. Ilan takes us through a crash course in ETF’s and explains why they have become so popular.

Investing in commodities can often be a roller coaster for investors and subject to extreme volatility. In this episode I speak with Craig Evans a Portfolio Manager at the Tribeca Global Natural Resources fund that seeks to return 15-20%p.a to investors through investing in natural resources.

Legendary Short Seller John Hemtpon talks about how to find great long term investments and how he profits from fraudsters.

Phil King has been described by the AFR as “one of Australia’s most Astute Investors”. We talk to Phil about his absolute return process and how he has been able to provide great returns to investors through investing in Australian and Asian Companies.

We follow up our conversation with Justin from September 2017 and get an update on the outlook for investing in listed and unlisted companies in Israel.

Christopher has advised key policy makers in Australia and the US on economic management. In this episode we discuss investing in enhanced cash along with his views on the investment outlook. Christopher is the founder of Coolabah Capital and is also a Contributing Editor to the Australian Financial Review.

Trevor Folsom retired at age 39 after he and his partner sold their business for more than $100m. Retirement lasted 3 months as Trevor headed back to what he loves doing: helping startups grow.

Kim Morrison joins us to discuss investing in agriculture and specifically water rights, a strategy that has been very successful for Kim over the last 10 years.

Rhett Kessler is one of my favourite investors. We speak with Rhett about his views on the current equity market and outlook, along with his recent investment in CSL and the recycling company BIngo.

Adrian joins us to discuss the opportunity to make double digit returns by lending to property developers.

I speak with Michael Heine about his family’s long entrepreneurial track record from escaping Nazi Germany to successfully listing Netwealth in 2017. We cover topics such as selecting an adviser, intergenerational wealth and being an entrepreneur.

With a PHD in Neuroscience & Psychology, Chelsea is a well known keynote speaker on Mindfulness. We discuss Mindfulness and the complexities that increasing wealth brings to happiness.

Robert is the Global Co-Head of Portfolio Management for Partners Group, one of the largest investors in Private Equity with more than $80bn under management and over 1,000 employees in 19 countries around the world. We discuss the Global Value Fund they management, the Private Equity Market along with their process for evaluating investments.

Chris is a Principal and Portfolio Manager for Quay Global Investors, a fund that invests in real estate. We discuss the characteristics of the asset class along with his outlook.

Haydn Smith is a Portfolio Manager at Tribeca Investment Partners and runs Tribeca’s Global Natural Resources Credit Fund. Haydn joins us to talk about the double-digit returns the fund is earning by lending to mining companies. Prior to Tribeca, Haydn was formerly the Global Head of Macquarie Bank’s Mining Finance Group.

In this episode we speak with Mattias Westman, Founding Partner at Prosperity Capital Management. In particular we discuss Prosperity’s investment strategy, which focuses on public companies in Russia and the former USSR and which has led the fund to produce a compound annual growth rate of 25% p.a. since its launch in 1999. The firm manages US $3 billion on behalf of institutional grade investors such as sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and family offices.

In this episode we chat to Tony Waters of QVG and discuss fast-growing small Australian companies such as AfterPay. As a founder and Portfolio Manager of the QVG Opportunities Fund, Tony manages money for sophisticated clients and institutions. The fund returned 9.3% in FY19 and has grown by 55% since its inception in June 2017.

Magellan has produced a return of 20% for FY19 and 16% p.a. for the last 10 years. We discuss a wide range of subjects including why the interest rate outlook is important for investors, the US/China trade tensions, Facebook’s new cryptocurrency “Libra” and what investors should be focusing on.

John comes back onto Inside The Rope to revisit COVID-19 and discuss the things that he believes Bronte Capital miscalculated at the beginning of the pandemic, along with what else they could have done better. He and David also discuss how society measures the risk vs reward benefit of returning to normal activities in light of COVID-19, along with how that is relevant from the perspective of investing in financial markets. John also highlights some of Bronte’s latest investments, which John places all in the “value bucket”. Over the last decade, John believes that most of the underperformance of value investing can be attributed to rapid changes such as the internet which have swept the world. Finally, John discusses Bronte’s latest position in Tobacco, and whilst not shying away from the potential risks, he highlights the opportunities he believes it presents.