Andrew Horowitz has spent more than thirty years watching markets move. In this episode of the Alternative Investing Advantage, he explains the macro forces that shape every investment decision you make, from monetary policy to market structure.

Key Points:

- How politics entered monetary policy and changed the market cycle

- Why rising debt to GDP levels matter more than most investors think

- The petrodollar, the Strait of Hormuz, and pressure on the US dollar

- Why market-cap-weighted indexes hide what is really happening

- How AI capital expenditure could become the next valuation problem

- Why illiquidity can work in favor of long-term investors

- The rise of the retail investor and what it means for volatility

- Practical signals to watch, including SPY versus RSP

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:37 Thirty years of market experience

04:28 What changed after the great financial crisis

10:06 Deficits, debt, and modern monetary theory

18:03 Digital currencies and the rise of alternatives

23:00 Illiquidity as an advantage

28:44 The retail investor comes of age

35:51 Inflation, AI capex, and market structure

40:11 How to read the indexes correctly

49:40 Final advice for individual investors

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected].

Learn more about our guest, Andrew Horowitz: https://www.thedisciplinedinvestor.com/

Learn more about Advanta IRA: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/ https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/ https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#Macroeconomics #AlternativeInvestments #SelfDirectedIRA

Student housing investing turned pharmacist Ryan Chaw into a millionaire by 28 and let him retire from pharmacy at 31. In this episode, host Alex Perny sits down with the founder of Newbie Real Estate Investing to break down the rent-by-the-room strategy: buying spacious homes near top colleges, adding bedrooms, and renting each room individually to students and young professionals.Key Points:• How Ryan went from new pharmacist to millionaire real estate investor by age 28• Why renting by the bedroom can double a property's typical rental income• Staying compliant with fair housing laws when marketing student rentals• Structuring August-to-August leases and handling summer subletting• Extra revenue streams: couples upcharges, move-in fees, and cleaning fees• The house supervisor system that cuts tenant conflict and management headaches• Furnishing strategy and how these rentals compete with dorms and apartmentsChapters:00:00 Introduction01:46 From Pharmacist to Real Estate Investor05:42 The Rent-by-the-Room Student Housing Strategy09:07 Renovations That Add Bedrooms and Cash Flow12:00 Permits, Zoning, and Occupancy Limits18:04 Marketing Rentals and Fair Housing Compliance21:24 Lease Structure and Summer Subletting31:20 Costly Mistakes and Inspection Lessons37:25 Managing Student Tenants and House Supervisors53:44 House Rules and Risk Management59:14 How to Connect With Ryan ChawSubscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected] more about our guest, Ryan Chaw: https://www.newbierealestateinvesting.com/Learn more about Advanta IRA: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/ https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/ https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/#StudentHousing #RealEstateInvesting #PassiveIncome

Digital asset treasury is changing how companies manage cash and protect value. Wojciech Kaszycki of BTCS joins host Alex Perny to explain how actively managed Bitcoin treasuries work and why the Bitcoin standard could define the next thirty years of corporate finance.

Key Points:

- Digital asset treasury companies actively manage Bitcoin rather than simply holding it like an ETF.

- The Bitcoin standard positions anti-inflation assets as essential for long-term company survival.

- Companies with Bitcoin on the balance sheet may secure larger credit lines and grow faster.

- Early adoption in 2017 faced auditor pushback, bank account closures, and regulatory confusion.

- Institutions now drive the market that retail investors originally built from the ground up.

- Tokenization embeds settlement, security, and compliance directly into the blockchain layer.

- Volatility remains healthy for the market while wider participation reduces price manipulation.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

02:11 Meet Wojciech Kaszycki and BTCS

04:05 Why Build a Digital Asset Treasury Company

11:06 The 2017 Roadblocks to Adoption

16:54 Retail Built It, Institutions Adopted It

36:37 Tokenization and the Web3 Future

53:46 The Big Benefits for Corporate Treasury

57:34 Volatility, Stability, and Market Manipulation

01:00:30 Where to Connect With Wojciech

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected].

Learn more about our guest, Wojciech Kaszycki: https://www.btcs.com/

Learn more about Advanta IRA: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/ https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/ https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#DigitalAssetTreasury #CorporateTreasury #Tokenization

Major Hillard IV started with $1,500, a used book he found in his father's attic, and three jobs he couldn't make work. Today he runs MH Estates LLC, a vertically integrated real estate operation built entirely on buying distressed properties that other investors avoid. In this episode, Major joins host Alex Perny to break down exactly how he turns overlooked deals into long-term cash flow.

Key Points:

• How Major built his first portfolio with almost no starting capital

• Why he targets distressed, mismanaged properties that institutional buyers pass on

• What to look for during due diligence: infrastructure, deferred maintenance, and hidden costs

• How restructuring leases and renovating units can increase property value almost overnight

• Why vertical integration, owning acquisition, management, sales, and financing under one roof, creates a lasting edge

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Major's $1,500 start

07:30 Lessons learned and early mistakes

17:36 Spotting deferred maintenance and infrastructure red flags

28:20 Buying distressed, mismanaged properties for value

41:27 The stigma versus the real economics

57:18 How to connect with Major Hillard

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected].

Learn more about our guest, Major Hillard IV: https://www.mhestates.com

Learn more about Advanta IRA: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/ https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/ https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#RealEstateInvesting #ValueAddInvesting #AlternativeInvesting

Samir Patel bought his first hotel as a junior at West Point. Two decades later, he runs Trophy Point Capital, a private debt fund that has originated over 1,500 loans. In this episode, Samir joins host Alex Perny to break down how debt funds generate yield, why he keeps 8 million dollars of his own money in a first-loss position, and what separates a well-run lender from a risky one.

Key Points

- How Samir went from buying a hotel as a West Point cadet to managing a top 100 private lender

- The difference between fix-and-flip bridge loans and DSCR loans, and why Trophy Point sticks to short-term lending

- How institutional money has pushed private lending rates down to the 9 to 11 percent range

- Why Samir keeps 8 million dollars of personal capital in a first-loss position behind every investor

- The hidden incentive problems in debt fund fee structures, including who keeps origination points

- What Samir looks for when evaluating whether a debt fund manager can actually get money back

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Samir Patel and Trophy Point Capital

07:10 Why velocity matters more than price in lending markets

10:51 Bridge loans, fix and flip, and why Trophy Point avoids DSCR

14:25 Skin in the game and the 8 million dollar first-loss position

15:59 How institutional money has changed private lending rates

23:16 Securitization and where hard money loans fit into Wall Street

28:43 What is really driving demand for rehab and construction lending

32:38 The biggest pain points for borrowers and operators right now

39:48 How Trophy Point structures its fund and pays investors

44:23 Why fast capital raises lead to bad lending decisions

45:42 Foreclosure, disposition, and getting paid back

50:58 Why debt is easier to value than equity inside an IRA

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected].

Learn more about our guest, Samir Patel: https://trophypointcapital.com

Learn more about Advanta IRA:

Website: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/AdvantaIRA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/advantaira

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/advantaira

#DebtFundInvesting #PrivateLending #AlternativeInvesting

Mark Khuri, CEO and co-founder of SMK Capital Management, joins Alternative Investing Advantage host Alex Perny to break down two niche real estate strategies built for passive investors: mobile home park investing and industrial sale leasebacks.

Key Points:

- Mobile home parks have a structural supply moat driven by zoning restrictions

- Tenant ownership models reduce expenses and improve occupancy stability

- Industrial sale leasebacks generate predictable, long-term cash flow

- Triple net leases protect investors from rising expenses and inflation

- Portfolio diversification across tenants and industries limits single-tenant risk

- Environmental phase one reports are a critical step in industrial underwriting

- Value-add plays in industrial include outdoor storage, power upgrades, and expansion

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:42 From single-family to commercial real estate

5:49 Using a self-directed IRA to diversify into new sectors

9:36 Mobile home park investing: supply scarcity and long-term demand

20:23 Installment contracts and converting tenants to homeowners

31:52 Ancillary income: submetering, Wi-Fi bundling, and more

39:48 Introduction to industrial sale leasebacks

49:16 Vetting tenants and managing industrial risk

55:22 Environmental due diligence and deal-breakers

1:01:16 Value-add opportunities in industrial real estate

1:05:34 Industrial outdoor storage as an ancillary play

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at [email protected].

Learn more about our guest, Mark Khuri: https://smkcap.com

Learn more about Advanta IRA:

https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira

https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/

https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA

https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/

https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#MobileHomeParkInvesting #SaleLeasebackRealEstate #PassiveRealEstateInvesting

Franchise investing is more sophisticated than most people realize. Bob Bernotas brings four decades of experience as a franchisee, national chain CEO, and consultant to walk us through how the industry actually works today.

Key Points:

- Franchise sales organizations (FSOs) have reshaped how brands grow across the country, and why the best ones screen rigorously before taking on a brand

- Brand aggregators provide infrastructure and capital that early-stage franchisors lack, accelerating growth and reducing risk for franchisees

- Getting into a franchise early in the territory lifecycle is one of the most powerful advantages an investor can have

- Semi-passive franchise models allow investors to keep their jobs while building a business that runs on a manager-operated system

- Red flags to watch for include excessive profit centers, restricted franchisee communication, and franchisors selling tier-three territories they previously turned down

- Service-based franchises that hold up in down economies are where the best risk-adjusted opportunities exist today

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:31 Bob Bernotas background and career

03:22 Why franchise systems beat building from scratch

05:19 How the franchise industry has evolved over 20 years

07:45 What franchise sales organizations (FSOs) are and how they work

11:39 FSO history and how to identify good vs. bad ones

13:48 How FSOs look from the investor's perspective

15:58 Warning signs that an FSO or brand is not worth your money

20:44 Semi-passive franchise models and time commitment

24:01 How brand aggregators differ from FSOs

28:57 Why chasing recognized brands is usually a mistake

31:19 What the current franchise investor market looks like

33:40 How franchise fees and support have changed

38:00 Profit centers, red flags, and how to spot a bad franchisor

43:40 Industries to avoid and what makes a franchise recession-resistant

47:21 Final thoughts on change and timing in franchising

50:14 Territory strategy and protecting your market

51:50 Closing advice and how to reach Bob

Subscribe to the Alternative Investing Advantage podcast for strategies, insights, and expert guests covering the full spectrum of alternative investing.

Questions? Contact us at [email protected]

Learn more about our guest, Bob Bernotas: https://www.franchisewithbob.com

Learn more about Advanta IRA:

Website: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/AdvantaIRA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/advantaira

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/advantaira

#FranchiseInvesting #AlternativeInvesting #FranchiseBusiness

What actually goes into the financial data powering your brokerage app? In this episode, Alex Perny sits down with Andrew Lebbos, Director of Licensing at Benzinga, to pull back the curtain on how financial data is produced, validated, and delivered at scale.

Key Points:

- Benzinga provides earnings, dividends, analyst ratings, and news to Robinhood, Fidelity, Schwab, and more

- Data validation combines AI-enabled QA systems with human oversight to catch outliers

- Proprietary first-party data is increasingly valuable as LLMs demand accurate inputs

- Benzinga powers Perplexity Finance and works with major hedge funds and brokerages

- Companies issue intra-quarter guidance to manage large expectation gaps

- Conference call transcripts and guidance calendars add context beyond raw earnings

- Private market data coverage is actively being built out by Benzinga

- Blockchain-based secondary markets and tokenized assets are opening private markets to retail investors

- Illiquidity in private markets can act as a behavioral safeguard against panic selling

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction and guest background

2:15 How financial data is packaged and produced

5:41 Data validation and QA systems

8:11 What outlier data means for investors

10:54 Earnings surprises and guidance calendars

13:13 AI's role in financial data accessibility

16:56 Benzinga's data-first business model

19:58 Ensuring data accuracy for AI platforms

22:36 How investors can verify AI outputs

26:32 LLM data sourcing and direct integrations

30:51 Changing investor behavior and private markets

34:08 Private market data challenges

38:51 Blockchain, tokenization, and secondary markets

45:12 Illiquidity as a behavioral benefit

48:25 Real estate, prediction markets, and Benzinga's scope

53:17 Where to find Benzinga

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Learn more about our guest, Andrew Lebbos:

https://www.benzinga.com/

Learn more about Advanta IRA:

https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira

https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/

https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA

https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/

https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#FinancialData #RetailInvesting #Benzinga #AlternativeInvesting #AIInvesting #PrivateMarkets #AlternativeInvestingAdvantage #FinancialLiteracy #InvestingPodcast #DataDrivenInvesting

Chan Ahn is the founder of Tessera and a 17-year veteran of Wall Street. He joins Alex Perny to explain how blockchain tokenization is opening private markets to retail investors. This episode covers pre-IPO investing, atomic settlement, counterparty risk, on-chain proof of reserve, stablecoins, and the regulatory outlook for tokenized assets.

Key Points:

- Private markets are restricted due to settlement risk and information asymmetry, not just regulation

- Blockchain enables atomic settlement: buyer and seller transact simultaneously with no delay and no counterparty trust required

- Tessera houses assets in a Cayman segregated portfolio and uses Chainlink for 24/7 on-chain verification

- SpaceX tokens trade on-chain at $1.5 to $1.66 trillion, a discount to the $1.75 to $2 trillion institutional target

- Tokenized assets total roughly $30 billion today and are growing at 200% year over year

- McKinsey projects the tokenized asset market reaches $2 trillion by 2030 out of a $300 trillion addressable market

- Blockchain will compress a decade of TradFi market evolution into one to two years

- Dollar-denominated stablecoins serve as the primary liquidity layer for tokenized private market assets

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:12 Chan's background: Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and founding Tesera

6:37 Why private markets exist: settlement risk and information asymmetry

13:16 How atomic settlement works on blockchain

20:19 Converting off-chain private equity into on-chain tokens

26:53 Liquidity, price discovery, and trading tokenized assets

32:10 Do private companies benefit from blockchain valuation transparency?

34:31 The disclosure challenge blockchain cannot solve alone

42:01 Derivatives, lending, and the next phase of tokenized markets

47:39 Stablecoins, FX risk, and liquidity standards

51:09 The $300T addressable market and the path to $2T by 2030

55:15 Why tokenization is a win for both companies and investors

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.

If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Learn more about our guest, Chan Ahn:

https://www.tessera.pe/

Learn more about Advanta IRA:

https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-ira

https://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/

https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA

https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/

https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/

#BlockchainInvesting #PreIPO #Tokenization #DeFi #PrivateMarkets #RWA #AlternativeInvesting #Tesera #ChanAhn #CryptoFinance

Africa burns off enough energy every day to power entire cities. Bitcoin miners figured out how to profit from it, and almost no one is paying attention yet.Jesse Pielke, founder of HashrateUp, joins Alex Perny on the Alternative Investing Advantage podcast to break down one of the most overlooked plays in alternative investing: using stranded energy in Africa to mine Bitcoin at near-zero cost.Jesse has spent years on the ground in Cape Town building pilot projects across Nigeria, Ethiopia, and South Africa. He explains why electricity has nowhere to go. 🔑 Key learnings from this episode:• Why a single 20-foot shipping container holds a full megawatt of mining capacity• How Bitcoin mining absorbs "stranded" energy that grid infrastructure can't move• Ethiopia's hydro power mecca and why politics keep burning investors• Nigeria's flared gas opportunity and how it creates a win-win for oil producers• Why older-generation ASICs that lose money in Norway can profit in Africa• The surprising reason Bitcoin mining only needs a basic LTE signal, not fiber• Risk-adjusted pricing: what energy really has to cost to make these deals work• How US investors can write off Bitcoin mining hardware against taxable income• Why Bitcoin mining gives energy producers a backup when commodity prices tank⏱ Chapters:00:00 – Intro & Jesse's background01:47 – How solar work in West Africa led Jesse to Bitcoin mining04:43 – Ethiopia & Nigeria: Africa's two biggest mining markets08:17 – South Africa's curtailed solar surplus10:30 – Why Bitcoin mining is power-dense and location-independent13:46 – Shipping containers, Starlink, and remote operations17:41 – Why mining needs almost no bandwidth19:36 – The interruptible nature of mining and why it matters21:30 – Security at remote sites24:06 – Ethiopia's volatile regulation and PPA structure26:58 – The Paraguay playbook and risk-adjusted pricing31:45 – Nigeria: flared gas, OPEC, and Bitcoin mining36:29 – Turbines, generators, and CapEx sharing40:58 – Old ASICs finding a second life in Africa47:35 – OPEC, UAE, and Bitcoin as an energy price hedge50:39 – Modularity and scaling into developed markets54:59 – How to get involved as an investor57:21 – Wrap-up and how to find JesseSubscribe to our YouTube channel and join our growing community for new videos every week.If you are interested in being a podcast guest speaker or have questions, contact us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Learn more about our guest, Jesse Pielke:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesse-pielke/Learn more about Advanta IRA: https://www.AdvantaIRA.com/ https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/advanta-irahttps://www.linkedin.com/company/Advanta-IRA/https://twitter.com/AdvantaIRA https://www.facebook.com/AdvantaIRA/ https://www.instagram.com/AdvantaIRA/#BitcoinMining #Africa #AlternativeInvesting #StrandedEnergy #Cryptocurrency #Blockchain #Nigeria #Ethiopia #SouthAfrica #HashrateUp #EnergyArbitrage #Bitcoin