Barenaked Money

Moving to Canada: Citizenship by Descent, Express Entry, and Common Immigration Pitfalls (with Grace Allen)

In this special bonus episode, Matt Kempton and Devin Cattelan of Verecan Capital Management, specialists in cross-border services with Verecan, interview Halifax immigration lawyer Grace Allen about what Americans should know before relocating to Canada, stressing that immigration, tax, investment, banking, estate planning, and lifestyle planning must align. Allen explains two main permanent-move avenues: family (citizenship by descent - potentially far back after Citizenship Act changes in December 2025 - and spousal sponsorship leading to permanent residence) and economic immigration, chiefly Express Entry, a points-based system now emphasizing category-based draws such as French proficiency (outside Quebec), healthcare, and trades, with options like provincial nomination. Timelines are typically 6–12 months after invitation, but candidates can wait years in the pool and may use temporary pathways like CUSMA work permits. She debunks buying property or investing as a shortcut, warns DUIs and non-disclosure can cause bans for serious criminality/misrepresentation, and notes citizenship can follow 1,095 days of presence as a PR plus testing and ceremony. Click here to view the episode transcript.

• (00:00) - Moving to Canada Basics

Risk vs. Volatility: Why “More Risk = More Return” Can Mislead Investors

Josh Sheluk and Colin White discuss how “risk and return” is widely marketed yet poorly understood, arguing that the industry often equates risk with volatility using measures like standard deviation, even though risk is subjective and tied to an investor’s goals. They outline different risks—volatility, permanent loss, inflation, liquidity, and behavioral risk—and stress that avoiding risk has costs, as seen in insurance and in giving up liquidity via products like long-term GICs or private investments. They challenge the simplistic pitch that more risk guarantees more return, noting examples where higher risk can have low expected returns (lotteries, casinos, zero-day options, concentrated positions, leveraged ETFs, and prediction markets). Their key point: define risk relative to objectives and time horizon, and be wary of sales-driven risk framing. Click here to view the episode transcript.

• (00:00) - Aug2026: The True Cost of Risk

ETFs vs Mutual Funds: Wrappers, Not Winners

Josh Sheluk and Colin White of Verecan Capital Management debunk the belief that ETFs are inherently good and mutual funds inherently bad, arguing both are simply investment “wrappers” and that what matters is what’s inside, the strategy, costs, and role in a portfolio. They explain how mutual funds have historically been associated with higher-cost active management while ETFs began as lower-cost passive index vehicles, but the lines have blurred with actively managed ETFs and low-cost passive mutual funds. Key structural differences include ETFs trading intraday on an exchange with bid-ask spreads and liquidity considerations, while mutual funds transact at end-of-day NAV. They discuss risks of complex/leveraged ETF products, note similar strategies can exist in mutual funds, and contrast hedge funds as more loosely regulated, often higher-cost and less liquid. They also explain why Verecan launched pooled mutual funds to simplify reporting, improve execution efficiency, and potentially reduce client costs without adding fees.

00:00 ETFs vs Mutual Funds Myth
02:52 Defining the Wrappers
04:33 Active vs Passive Origins
07:02 Marketing and Narrative Shift
08:52 Cost vs Value Debate
10:23 ETF Hype and Copycats
11:26 Hidden Costs and Bid Ask
13:10 Trading Mechanics and Liquidity
15:28 Leveraged ETFs and Strategy Risk
18:17 Hedge Funds Explained
24:39 Why We Launched Our Funds
28:47 Wrap Up and Disclosures

Why Retail Investors Should Avoid IPOs (SpaceX, OpenAI, and Index Inclusion Games)

Josh Sheluk and Colin White of Verecan Capital’s Barenaked Money explain what an IPO is, why companies go public, and the trade-offs versus staying private, including disclosure requirements and transparency. They argue retail investors should generally avoid IPOs because offerings are structured to favor insiders and investment banks, often rely on hype and limited float to influence valuation, lack a meaningful public track record, and tend to lose money or underperform the market on average—especially for buyers who can’t access the IPO price. Using SpaceX as a timely example, they discuss its extreme valuation, heavy losses, and the unusual, accelerated index-inclusion process and float adjustments that invite complex “gamesmanship” by large traders, making it a risky arena for individuals. They conclude markets can still build wealth, but it’s better to avoid IPO speculation.Click here to view the episode transcript.

• (00:00) - Should You Invest

How Much Do You Need to Retire? Why the Question Is Wrong—and What to Ask Instead

Hosts Josh Sheluk and Colin White of Barenaked Money discuss why common retirement questions—like how much money you need, when you can retire, average retirement spending or savings by age, and the “safe” 4% withdrawal rule—are often useless without personal context. They emphasize retirement planning is goals-based and depends on expected spending, timing, pensions, taxes, inflation, market variability, and especially changing priorities over time. They critique reliance on averages and fear-based industry numbers, and note plans rarely unfold in straight lines, citing unpredictable events and life changes. Their recommended approach is to focus on financial independence, understand trade-offs (e.g., retiring early vs. paying for kids’ education or buying a cottage), build flexibility and “slack,” and “retire to something” by replacing work’s purpose and social structure. They liken a financial plan to Google Maps that reroutes as conditions change. Click here to view the episode transcript.

• (00:00) - Tradeoffs That Matter

Canada Strong Fund vs. Sovereign Wealth Funds: Why Borrowing to Invest at Home Could Backfire

Hosts Josh Sheluk and Colin White discuss the proposed Canada Wealth/Canada Strong Fund and argue it differs materially from traditional sovereign wealth funds. They explain sovereign wealth funds originated as a response to “Dutch disease,” using commodity windfalls to build large funds (e.g., Norway’s) that invest outside the country to diversify and stabilize the domestic economy and currency. By contrast, they say Canada would start with about $25B in borrowed money, likely invest domestically, and overlap with existing vehicles like the Canada Infrastructure Bank and Canada Growth Fund without clear details on governance, cost of capital, returns, or liquidity. They warn government investing can become politically driven, may crowd out private capital, and fear a retail component with capital guarantees would shift risk to taxpayers and repeat past failures like labour-sponsored venture capital funds. Their current verdict is “no.”

00:00 Sovereign Wealth Hype
00:21 Show Intro and Setup
01:26 What Sovereign Wealth Means
02:44 Dutch Disease Origins
05:03 Norway Model Explained
06:59 Canada Strong Fund Basics
08:46 Where Will It Invest
10:35 Domestic Focus and Diversification
11:38 Government Investing Risks
14:04 Retail Investor Idea Alarm
16:38 EV Subsidies as Warning
19:26 What Government Should Do
21:09 Labor Fund Cautionary Tale
23:04 Guarantees and Liquidity Problems
31:06 Best Case vs Worst Case
33:43 Verdict and Wrap Up
35:17 Disclaimers and Credits

Prediction Markets: Why They’re Gambling, Not Investing

Hosts Josh Sheluk and Colin White of Verecan Capital Management discuss the rise of prediction markets (e.g., Polymarket, Kalshi, and a planned Wealthsimple product in Canada) following regulatory approvals, and argue people should avoid them. They frame the episode as a “draft of bad ideas,” led by the claim that participants will likely lose money, citing research on 1.4 million users and $20B in transactions showing profits are concentrated (1% earning ~80% of profits) and losses can be extreme (0.1% accounting for 43% of losses). They warn prediction markets are prone to manipulation and insider-information advantages, give examples of odds moving ahead of events, and criticize regulators’ rationale that people will do it anyway. They emphasize these products blur investing and gambling, siphon money from long-term investing, and are gamified to drive activity. Click here to view the episode transcript.

AI-Powered Misinformation and Financial Scams: Fake Opportunity, Authority, and Urgency

Hosts Josh Sheluk and Colin White of Barenaked Money welcome back misinformation researcher and author Matthew Facciani (Misguided) to discuss current misinformation trends, especially how AI scales personalized scams across social media, email, and increasingly convincing audio deepfake phone calls. Facciani outlines three common scam patterns—fake opportunity, fake authority, and fake urgency—and shares examples of AI-tailored job-offer and book-club scams that quickly pivot to small fees. He recommends habits and tools to reduce risk: pause and reflect before reacting emotionally, avoid clicking links, verify credentials via official sources, use lateral reading to check independent coverage and digital footprints, and leverage tools like reverse image search, the Wayback Machine, and URL checks. The conversation also covers identity and network overlap as drivers of bias, plus Facciani’s interactive tools for mapping identity complexity and social network diversity.Click here to view the episode transcript.

00:00 AI Scam Wake Up

00:11 Meet The Misinformation Expert

01:25 State Of Misinformation Now

03:23 Financial Scams Three Buckets

05:35 Deepfakes Voice And Text

06:48 Personalized Job Offer Scam

11:18 Spotting Scams Daily Habits

13:48 Book Club Flattery Trap

17:54 Predatory Conferences Gray Lines

20:49 Verify Claims With Lateral Reading

25:20 Identity Bias Map

26:41 Overlapping Identities Risk

28:46 Complexity Score Tool

30:29 Network Diversity Shield

34:29 Echo Chambers Everywhere

35:34 Privacy And Metrics

36:34 Critical Ignoring Chatbot

40:21 Making It A Business

41:41 Contrarian Matching Ideas

44:48 Where To Find Everything

47:16 Contact Info And Disclosures

47:16 Financial Advisor Disclaimer

War, Markets, and Why You Still Can’t Invest on Headlines

Hosts Josh Sheluk and Colin White discuss how wars and geopolitical conflict have historically affected markets, emphasizing the human tragedy while focusing on financial implications. They review major Middle East conflicts since 2000: Afghanistan (Oct 7, 2001), Iraq (Mar 20, 2003), the Syrian Civil War (Mar 15, 2011), the Yemeni Civil War (Sep 21, 2014), and the Oct 7, 2023 Israel conflict, and argue market outcomes were driven more by other forces (tech bubble collapse, European debt crisis, oil shocks, 2008 crisis) than by the conflicts themselves. They cite BCA Research finding only the 1973 Yom Kippur War/oil embargo clearly led to a bear market, noting today’s lower oil intensity and U.S. oil export position. They conclude rapid sentiment shifts make conflict “unreactable,” so investors should maintain resilient portfolios rather than adjust to headlines. Click here to view the episode transcript.