This week on Trillions, Joel and Eric record the podcast equivalent of a double-album with Barry Ritholtz, an ETF-using financial advisor as well as a Bloomberg Opinion columnist, host of the Bloomberg podcast "Masters in Business," and overall deep thinker. In addition to ETFs, the trio discusses investing, the economy, the role of the modern financial adviser, tariffs, Trump, and even God. We're calling this special body of work "Use Your Disillusion I & II," a nod to the seminal Guns N' Roses album. Why? Because - according to Barry - disillusionment is a major driver behind the rise of ETFs and passive investing.

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This week on Trillions, Joel and Eric record the podcast equivalent of a double-album with Barry Ritholtz, an ETF-using financial advisor as well as a Bloomberg Opinion columnist, host of the Bloomberg podcast "Masters in Business," and overall deep thinker. In addition to ETFs, the trio discusses investing, the economy, the role of the modern financial adviser, tariffs, Trump, and even God. We're calling this special body of work "Use Your Disillusion I & II," a nod to the seminal Guns N' Roses album. Why? Because - according to Barry - disillusionment is a major driver behind the rise of ETFs and passive investing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Next week, we’re going long with Barry Ritholtz—a money manager, Bloomberg Opinion columnist, and fellow podcast host. Get ready: We literally couldn't stop talking.

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You never go full crypto, right? Yet clearly some in the ETF industry see a massive opportunity, hence the steady talent trickle to the nascent space. To date, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has received more than 25 filings for ETFs featuring Bitcoin. They're effectively the participants in a Cannonball Run-esque race to gain the SEC's approval -- and whoever earns that blessing and is first to market could have a multi-billion-dollar product. But is this asset class even ready for primetime? How would it even work? What roadblocks must be overcome? 

On this episode of Trillions, Joel and Eric are joined by the perfect guest to discuss all of this: Matt Hougan. The vice president of Bitwise Asset Management and a veteran of the ETF industry, Hougan has deep knowledge of both industries. He's also a face in the Cannonball Run race. His firm just filed for the Bitwise Hold 10 Cryptocurrency Index Fund, which is the first proposed ETF that's a basket of cryptocurrencies. Hougan also gives his take on many of the biggest trends in the ETF industry, from zero-fee funds to passive's future.

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What is the best ETF for the long-term? How important is index selection? Is there a pot ETF? Can you get private equity exposure through an ETF? These are just some of the questions that Joel and Eric attempt to answer in this episode of Trillions where they dig into the proverbial "mailbag" of questions from listeners on various platforms. 

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Trade tensions and tariffs are a new variable for investors. How should investors differentiate between noise and reality? Should they adjust their portfolio? What ETFs can be used? Joel and Eric are joined by reporter Sarah Ponczek and advisor John Davi to discuss.

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No one person has had a bigger impact on the fund industry than Vanguard founder Jack Bogle, the legendary investor who invented indexing and popularized low-fee mutual funds. One of Vanguard's biggest advantages: Its mutual fund ownership structure, which is an original Bogle breakthrough.

Bogle now thinks other firms will have to follow suit to survive in the future -- one of a few topics he plans to explore in his next book, Stay the Course: The Story of Vanguard and the Index Revolution (Wiley, October 2018). If he's right, the financial ecosystem is in for major changes.

During their visit to Vanguard, Joel and Eric also picked Bogle's brain on ETFs, financial advisors, active share, behavior, and Bitcoin for this special episode of Trillions.

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ETF flows are one of the best ways to get inside the mind of investors. They tell you which asset classes, sectors, strategies and specific ETFs both traders and long-term investors are favoring. But interpreting flows is as much art as science. On this week’s Trillions, Joel and Eric are joined by Todd Rosenbluth of CFRA to dissect ETF inflows and outflows from the first half of what is at once both a typical and atypical year.

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There are over 120 U.S. ETF issuers, but only one has more than $1 trillion in assets, over 300 products and knows what it is like to beat Vanguard: BlackRock. The asset manager made the equivalent of the Louisiana Purchase when it acquired iShares from Barclays in 2009, a move that has made them the most dominant player in the industry. Joel and Eric interview Martin Small, head of U.S. iShares, about ETFs, investing and his insatiable appetite for guitars. 

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