Markets and Leaders Podcast

Hollywood has a buying problem. And the price tag has a lot of zeroes.

Brian Balthazar returns to Markets & Leaders to unpack the blockbuster mergers, billion dollar acquisitions and executive power plays reshaping the media and entertainment industry. When companies combine, the pitch is usually bigger reach, greater efficiency and a glorious future. But between the boardroom presentation and the actual execution? That’s where things can get expensive.

With decades of experience behind some of television’s biggest names, Brian brings an insider’s perspective to the strategy, ambition and occasional chaos driving entertainment’s biggest deals. Who’s thinking three moves ahead, what can derail a grand plan, and when does a bold acquisition start looking like an exceptionally expensive midlife crisis?

We’re talking business strategy, M&A, media consolidation and the decisions that could change the industry. No spoilers. There may, however, be a few uncomfortable questions.

We gave CEOs a microphone, took away their excuses, and put their professional reputations on the line. What could possibly go wrong?

Welcome to the FUNNIEST moments from Markets & Leaders, where CEOs, mining executives and investment strategists discover that years of industry experience offer absolutely no protection when Lyndsay Malchuk is running the games.

From a mining apocalypse and uranium BS detection to investment conviction calls, artificial intelligence and the dreaded “well, it depends,” these are the unexpected answers, questionable calls and hilarious moments our guests probably didn't anticipate when they agreed to come on the podcast.

Featuring Raul Munoz of Marsh, Ronnie Stöferle of Incrementum AG, Jon Bey of Standard Uranium, Rahul Goel of Century Global Commodities, Nick Kuzyk and Andrew Moncur of Answir, Christopher Ecclestone of Hallgarten & Company, and Todd Stone of the Association of Mineral Exploration in BC.

Business is serious. Investing is serious. Our games? Not so much.

BC MINING IS CHANGING FAST. IS CANADA READY FOR WHAT COMES NEXT?

Todd Stone and AME BC have been anything but quiet this summer.

From pushing Ottawa to close the financing gap for Canada’s 171 advanced critical mineral projects, to challenging BC over DRIPA, land use planning, ELUA orders and mineral claim delays, AME has been putting some very uncomfortable questions directly on the table.

And the timing matters.

Canada wants critical minerals. BC wants to be a major mining jurisdiction. Governments are putting money behind infrastructure and exploration. But investors still want certainty, capital wants a pathway and explorers need to know they can actually get to work.

In this episode of Markets & Leaders, Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Todd Stone, President & CEO of AME BC, to talk about what has changed, what is still broken and where BC mining goes from here.

They get into BC mining, critical minerals, copper, mineral exploration, mining investment, DRIPA, permitting, land use, infrastructure, strategic capital, Indigenous partnerships, AI and the future of Canadian mining.

The Fed just raised rates. Now the question isn't what they did...it’s what breaks next. And for Canadian investors, the fallout could reach far beyond the stock market.

The Fed just raised rates. Now the question isn't what they did — it's what breaks next. And for Canadian investors, the fallout could reach far beyond the stock market.

Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Michael Succurro, CEO of Spark Financial Group, to unpack the macro forces now moving through global markets — inflation, real yields, the Treasury curve, the Canadian dollar, the Fed vs. Bank of Canada, equity valuations, the TSX and the changing cost of capital.

Is the market underestimating how long rates could stay elevated? Are investors still pricing assets for cheap money? And what happens when U.S. monetary policy and Canadian monetary policy move in different directions?

What if the biggest mistake investors are making in mining isn't picking the wrong commodity... but believing the right story?

Christopher Ecclestone, Principal & Mining Strategist at Hallgarten & Company, joins Lyndsay Malchuk on Markets & Leaders to challenge the narratives driving today's mining and critical minerals markets.

We go far beyond the usual copper conversation, digging into mining market fads, critical minerals, antimony, copper supply, geopolitical risk, mining investment, resource nationalism, processing capacity, junior mining companies and the gap between a great mineral story and a great investment.

Christopher also takes on our rapid fire BUY IT OR BYE BYE? game, where he gets three seconds to make the call.

And yes... we make him choose.

Think you know which commodities deserve your attention? Christopher may change your mind.

What happens to capital markets communication when AI can process almost everything, investors expect information instantly and trust becomes harder to earn?

In this episode of Markets & Leaders, Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Nick Kuzyk, Founder of Answir, and Andrew Moncur, Founder of Capital Markets Dad and Head of Sales at Answir, for a wide ranging conversation about where investor communication is heading and what investors actually want from companies.

We get into AI and capital markets, investor psychology, trust, storytelling, reputation, the changing information landscape and the increasingly human side of finance.

AI can identify patterns, compare years of commentary and make enormous amounts of information easier to access. But communication is about more than information. It is also about judgment, context, credibility, relationships and understanding the people behind the public story.

We also get into why some companies have an incredible story but still struggle to capture investor attention, who investors actually trust when information is coming from everywhere, and what exceptional capital markets communication could look like five years from now.

Iron ore doesn't make headlines like gold, oil or copper... but perhaps it should.

In this episode of the Markets & Leaders Podcast, host Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Rahul Goel, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Century Global Commodities, for a conversation that goes far beyond mining.

From global infrastructure and AI data centres to geopolitics, China, India, supply chains and the future of steel, this discussion explores why iron ore may be one of the world's most strategically important—and overlooked—commodities.

Drawing on decades of experience trading commodities across China, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, Europe and the Middle East, Rahul shares his perspective on reading global markets, navigating commodity cycles and identifying the trends many investors are missing.

The conversation also explores Century Global's unique corporate strategy, including its profitable food distribution business in Hong Kong and how it was intentionally developed to help support the company's long term iron ore strategy. 

Whether you're an investor, entrepreneur, mining executive, or simply interested in the forces shaping the global economy, this episode offers a fresh perspective on a commodity that quietly influences almost everything around us.

What separates a great investor from everyone else?

Is it the ability to predict markets? Find the next winning stock? Know exactly when to buy and sell?

Michael Succurro believes the answer may be something much more difficult: knowing how to make good decisions when you don't know what happens next.

In this episode of Markets & Leaders, Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Michael Succurro, Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Spark Financial Group and Portfolio Manager, for a candid and surprisingly personal conversation about investing, judgment, risk, conviction and the psychology behind financial decision making.

Rather than chasing the next market prediction, this conversation goes deeper into how professional investors actually think.

Michael and Lyndsay explore what confidence really means when certainty doesn't exist, why a phenomenal process can matter more than a brilliant investment idea, how experience changes an investor's convictions, and why some of the things experienced investors stop trying to predict can be just as important as the opportunities they pursue.

They also get into the uncomfortable side of investing: knowing when conviction has turned into ego, recognizing when an investment no longer fits your process, and understanding the human behaviours that continue to drive markets no matter how sophisticated technology becomes.

And then things get a little less serious.

Lyndsay puts Michael under pressure with "Tell Me Why I'm Wrong" — a rapid fire investing game featuring questionable financial decisions, a golf course stock tip, AI replacing financial advisors, crypto, uranium, TikTok and a few other decisions that probably should never make it into a portfolio.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• Why certainty can be one of the most dangerous things in investing
• How professional investors make decisions without knowing the outcome
• Process versus brilliant ideas: which investor wins over 20 years?
• How experience can completely change an investor's beliefs
• The difference between conviction and ego
• What experienced investors stop trying to predict
• Why human behaviour still matters in an increasingly technological market
• How fear, greed, confidence and overconfidence continue to influence markets
• The importance of challenging your own assumptions
• What investors can learn from being wrong
• Why better questions can lead to better investment decisions

This is not another conversation about trying to predict the next market move.

It's a conversation about judgment.

Because none of us gets to make investment decisions with perfect information. The real advantage may be learning how to think clearly when everyone else is reacting.

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Remember, these are the opinions of our own with possible vested interest in any or all of the companies we may have spoken about. This is not to be used as financial advice. Always be sure to speak with a licensed financial advisor and know your own risk tolerances. For a copy of our complete disclaimer, head over to apaton.com.

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Uranium is no longer simply a mining or commodity story. As nuclear energy moves back to the centre of global energy strategy, uranium is increasingly colliding with geopolitics, national security, artificial intelligence, electricity demand, critical minerals and institutional capital.

In this episode of Markets & Leaders, Lyndsay Malchuk sits down with Jon Bey, CEO of Standard Uranium, for a conversation that goes well beyond the conventional uranium investment thesis.

We get into how the uranium market actually works, why utilities think very differently from investors, the disconnect between spot prices and long term contracting, where capital is flowing, the changing role of governments and whether investors are still valuing uranium as a commodity when the world is beginning to treat it as a strategic asset.

And then we ask the uncomfortable question:

If uranium were discovered today instead of 200 years ago, would you still be allowed to invest?

Because perhaps the biggest uranium story isn't where the price goes next. It's whether the market is still valuing uranium according to the world that existed yesterday.

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GUEST: Jon Bey, CEO, Standard Uranium
HOST: Lyndsay Malchuk
SHOW: Markets & Leaders

What do government policy, Hollywood, climate risk, inflation, bond yields, artificial intelligence, critical minerals and copper all have in common? More than you might think.
In this special edition of Markets & Leaders, Lyndsay Malchuk brings together a curated collection of conversations with Todd Stone, Brian Balthazar, Raul Munoz, Ronald Stoeferle, Adrian O'Brian, Attila Kadikoy, Michael Succurro and Rick Rule to explore the ideas shaping investing, business, capital markets, mining, technology, leadership and the global economy.
These aren't random clips.
Together, they tell a much bigger story.
Each conversation offers a unique perspective, but when you connect the dots, you begin to see the trends influencing how capital is flowing, how industries are evolving, where governments are investing, how businesses are adapting, and what leaders are paying attention to before it becomes tomorrow's headline.
From Hollywood's battle for attention to the future of copper. From climate resilience to bond yields. From artificial intelligence and data centres to government policy and global investing, this episode brings together conversations that challenge conventional thinking and leave you looking at the world a little differently.
Inside this episode:• Why DRIPA continues to shape conversations around business, government and investment in British Columbia.• Why Hollywood is no longer competing with just Hollywood and how the creator economy has changed entertainment forever.• Why climate resilience has become a business strategy that extends far beyond insurance.• Why the traditional 60/40 investment portfolio is being challenged in today's economic environment.• Why governments are directing billions of dollars toward strategic resource projects.• How artificial intelligence, regulation and data centres are reshaping asset management and global energy demand.• Why bond yields influence financial markets, real estate, borrowing costs and everyday purchasing power.• Why copper, critical minerals and defence metals continue to be some of the most important long term investment themes in the world.
Continue the ConversationListen to the full conversations featured in this episode:
 Todd Stone | Episode 17Go behind the scenes of DRIPA, its creation, and why understanding public policy matters for business, investment and British Columbia's future. Brian Balthazar | Episode 18Discover why Hollywood underestimated the creator economy and how the battle for attention is reshaping the entertainment industry. Raul Munoz | Episode 6Explore how climate risk is changing corporate strategy, protecting employees, and influencing long term business decisions. Ronald Stoeferle | Episode 11Learn why inflation challenged decades of investment thinking and why the traditional 60/40 portfolio may no longer tell the whole story. Adrian O'Brian | Episode 20Understand why governments are funding strategic resource projects and why major mining companies are increasingly buying discoveries instead of making them. Attila Kadikoy | Episode 8Hear how regulation, artificial intelligence and data centres are transforming asset management, investing and global energy demand. Michael Succurro | Episode 14Gain a clear understanding of bond yields, interest rates and the economic forces influencing stocks, real estate and financial markets. Rick Rule | Episode 9Listen as legendary investor Rick Rule shares why copper, critical minerals and defence metals remain some of the most compelling opportunities for long term investors.

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