WTFinance

Interview recorded - 20th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Alex Krainer. Alex has worked as a market analyst, researcher, trader and hedge fund manager since 1996. He is the founder Krainer Analytics and creator of I-System Trend following. During our conversation we spoke about Alex's outlook on the current geopolitical landscape, potential for a peace agreement between Russia & Ukraine, the forgotten Europe, risk of WW3 and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 – Introduction1:20 – Geopolitics overview9:18 – Peace agreement?15:02 – Europe forgotten?21:00 – Middle East & Asia35:40 – Risk of WW3?39:36 – One message to takeawayAlex is the founder of Krainer Analytics and creator of I-System Trend Following. He has worked as a market analyst, researcher, trader and hedge fund manager since 1996. Alex was born and raised in a socialist regime of former Yugoslavia, under one-party communist rule. As a 17-year old he joined a student exchange program and took up his university studies there, ultimately transferring to Switzerland on a scholarship where he completed a degree in Business and Economics.From Switzerland his path led him to Venezuela where he lived for a year and experienced his first banking crisis in 1994 when 9 of Venezuela’s 16 largest banks failed and brought the country’s economy to a grinding halt. The same year he returned to Croatia and joined the military where he served through 1995 during the last phases of Croatia’s war of independence. In 1996, upon discharge from the military, Alex took employment at an oil trading company in Monaco. In 1998 he became the head of risk and CEO in 2000. Alex had originated the firm’s research and development program in market analysis and application of neural networks and artificial intelligence in trading of financial and commodities markets. By 2007 Alex launched his own investment management business and was among the small minority of managers who generated positive investment returns (+27%) during the 2008 financial crisis. Over the following six years, his fund outperformed the Dow Jones Credit Suisse index of Blue Chip commodity futures trading funds. In 2011 Alex Joined Lee Robinson’s Altana Wealth to manage the firm’s inflation hedging strategy. In 2019 Alex created Altana Wealth’s systematic portfolio allocation strategy designed to bridge the gap between technology and finance. In more recent years, Alex also busied himself as an author. He published his first book “Mastering Uncertainty in Commodities Trading” in 2015. In 2021 this book was selected as #1 on Financial-Expert.co.uk’s list of “The 5 Best Commodities Books for Investors and Traders.” In 2017 he published “The Grand Deception” which is available exclusively from the RedPill Press. In 2021 he published “Alex Krainer’s Trend Following Bible.”Alex Krainer - X - https://x.com/NakedHedgieI-System - https://isystem-tf.com/Substack - https://alexkrainer.substack.com/Trend Compass - https://isystem-tf.com/trendcompass/WTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas

Interview recorded - 20th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Matthew Piepenburg. Matthew is a Partner of Von Greyerz AG.During our conversation we spoke about his outlook on the economy, disconnect between markets and main street, credit unravelling, increased political risk, growing out of debt, silver and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:18 - Outlook on the economy8:20 - Disconnect between markets and main street23:55 - Credit unravelling27:17 - Political risk35:51 - Grow out of debt?42:24 - Silver50:11 - One message to takeaway?Matt began his finance career as a transactional attorney before launching his first hedge fund during the NASDAQ bubble of 1999-2001Thereafter, he began investing his own and other HNW family funds into alternative investment vehicles while operating as a General Counsel, CIO and later Managing Director of a single and multi-family office. Matthew worked closely as well with Morgan Stanley’s hedge fund platform in building a multi-strat/multi-manager fund to better manage risk in a market backdrop of extreme central bank intervention/support. The conviction that precious metals provides the most reliable and longer-term protection against potential systemic risk led Matt to join VON GREYERZ.The author of the Amazon No#1 Release, Rigged to Fail, Matt is fluent in French, German and English; he is a graduate of Brown (BA), Harvard (MA) and the University of Michigan (JD). Along with Egon von Greyerz, Matthew is the co-author of Gold Matters, which offers an extensive examination of gold as an historically-confirmed wealth-preservation asset.Matthew Piepenburg - LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/matthewpiepenburgWebsite - https://vongreyerz.gold/WTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas

Interview recorded - 13th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Wasif Latif. Wasif is the President and CIO of Sarmaya Partners, with 25 years of investment experience, managing equity, global multi-asset and multi- manager portfolios in mutual funds and ETFs, wealth management and institutional portfolios.During our conversation we spoke about his market outlook, the return to tangibles, return of inflation, oil in 2026, commodities continue to run and more. I hope you enjoy! 0:00 - Introduction1:32 - Overview of markets8:58 - Driver of inflation?13:30 - Global or US trend?18:50 - Oil in 2026?22:38 - Importance of Oil & Gas26:48 - Commodities peaked?36:33 - One message to takeaway?Wasif has over 25 years of investment experience, managing equity, global multi-asset and multi- manager portfolios in mutual funds and ETFs, wealth management and institutional portfolios. Built and launched ETFs, mutual funds and managed account platforms.Wasif Latif -Website - https://sarmayapartners.com/ETF - https://sarmayaetf.com/X - https://x.com/sarmayakar24?s=21&t=vCJTBKSb-nIJ8eFKe0YAxgWTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseasThumbnail image from - https://www.miningweekly.com/article/bhp-mega-bid-and-10-000-copper-expose-minings-biggest-problem-2024-04-29

Interview recorded - 12th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Chris Vermeulen. Chris is the Founder & Chief Market Strategist at The Technical Traders. During our conversation we spoke about his outlook on the economy, magnificent seven bubble, potential market crash, bull trap, precious metals, US dollar and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:05 - Outlook in the economy2:35 - Magnificent seven4:34 - Market crash on the horizon?6:29 - What Chris is watching10:29 - Bull trap?12:18 - Government shutdown15:04 - Government treasuries17:29 - Dot com bubble?19:22 - Allocating during crisis?22:17 - Precious metals23:09 - US Dollar24:34 - Bitcoin27:24 - One message to takeaway?Chris Vermeulen is a visionary investor who pioneered an industry-breaking method of investing called “Asset Revesting.” Chris introduced this innovative approach in his latest book, “Asset Revesting – How to Exclusively Hold Assets Rising in Value, Profit During Bear Markets, and Continue Building Wealth in Retirement.“Chris’s journey in the financial world began in 1997 at 16. Using his innate talent for trading and risk management, Chris earned enough money to pay for his final year of college, where he earned a business diploma in operations management. He then transitioned into a full-time entrepreneur and trader, achieving financial freedom in his 20s.His expertise in technical analysis led him to create systematic processes that uncover unique trading and investment opportunities. A persistent advocate for managing portfolio risk, Chris has little faith in the buy-and-hold strategy, which often entails holding onto depreciating assets.Chris’s innovative approach to asset allocation emphasizes efficiency, resulting in systems that manage portfolio positions, exhibit low drawdowns, and consistently outperform the markets. His short-term and long-term strategies are perfect for those seeking proven techniques to manage and protect capital.Chris is widely recognized as an exceptional technical trader, possessing profound insight and a keen understanding of market trends. He shares his wisdom in his book “Technical Trading Mastery, Second Edition – 7 Steps to Win with Logic,” further solidifying his reputation as a trailblazer in the financial industry.Chris Vermeulen - Website - https://thetechnicaltraders.com/Twitter - https://twitter.com/TheTechTradersYouTube - @TheTechnicalTraders WTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseasThumbnail image from - https://www.financialexpress.com/world-news/us-news/why-did-the-us-stock-market-fall-over-1-1-trillion-was-wiped-out/3934378/

Interview recorded - 4th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming on Shaun Rein. Shaun is the Founder and Managing Director of the China Market Research Group (CMR), the world’s leading strategic market intelligence firm focused on China. During our conversation we spoke about what is happening on the ground in China, the tariff strategy, consolidation in Chinese manufacturing, secular shift in US excellence, End of the American Empire and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:49 - What is happening in China?5:29 - Second order tariffs9:42 - Tariff strategy13:11 - China trade unfairness18:04 - Consolidation of China21:19 - More upside in China?23:59 - Secular shift?26:22 - Trade war ending?29:59 - End of the American Empire?Shaun Rein is the Founder and Managing Director of the China Market Research Group (CMR), the world's leading strategic market intelligence firm focused on China. He works with Boards, billionaires, Heads of States, CEOs and senior executives of Fortune 500 & leading Chinese companies, private equity firms, SMEs and long/ hedge funds to develop their China growth, political and investment strategies. Rein authored the international best-sellers "The War for China's Wallet: Profiting from the New World Order," "The End of Cheap China"​ & "The End of Copycat China."​ Publishers Weekly named "Cheap"​ a "Top 10 business book for 2012." The Financial Times called "Copycat"​ "Intriguing" and said of Wallet: “Mr. Rein’s insider tales of what it takes to work in contemporary China are insightful...a toolbox for those who want to work with Chinese companies make it a worthwhile read.”Rein is regularly featured in the Wall Street Journal and The Financial Times. His op-eds have appeared in the New York Times. He frequently appears on CNN, BBC, MarketPlace, CNBC, Bloomberg, PBS and MSNBC. Rein formerly taught executive education classes for London Business School and was a weekly columnist for CNBC and Forbes. He also wrote a column for Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Rein is one of the most sought out keynote speakers focused on innovation, consumer trends and the economy in China.Shaun Rein - Website - http://www.cmrconsulting.com.cn/xsyX - https://x.com/shaunreinYouTube -  @shaunrein4708 WTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4X - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseasThumbnail image from - https://basc.berkeley.edu/the-u-s-china-trade-war-whats-next/

Interview recorded - 4th of November, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Michael Green. Michael is the portfolio manager & chief strategist of Simplify. During our conversation we spoke about his outlook on the economy, the government shutdown, next FED chair, tariffs, geopolitics and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:45 - Outlook on the economy?4:35 - Government shutdown6:03 - Credit spreads increasing?8:39 - FED actions10:17 - Next FED chair?13:15 - Trump communications14:37 -Tariffs18:05 - Capital flight19:12 - Geopolitical play23:15 - Chinese missteps24:55 - Shift of the US Empire27:30 - Political institutions29:28 - Strategic investments31:55 - One message to takeaway from conversation?Michael has been a student of markets and market structure, for nearly 30 years. His proprietary research into the shift from actively managed portfolios and investment funds to systematic passive investment strategies has been presented to the Federal Reserve, the BIS, the IMF and numerous other industry groups and associations.Michael joined Simplify in April 2021 after serving as Chief Strategist and Portfolio Manager for Logica Capital Advisers, LLC. Prior to Logica, Michael managed macro strategies at Thiel Macro, LLC, an investment firm that manages the personal capital of Peter Thiel. Prior to Thiel, Michael founded Ice Farm Capital, a discretionary global macro hedge fund seeded by Soros Fund Management. From 2006-2014, Michael founded and managed the New York office of Canyon Capital Advisors, a $23B multi-strategy hedge fund based in Los Angeles, CA, where he established their global macro strategies, managing in excess of $5B of exposure across equity, credit, FX, commodity and derivative markets.In addition to his work as a market theorist and portfolio manager, Michael has been noted for his work as a public speaker and financial media participant. He is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a CFA holder.Michael Green - Substack - https://www.yesigiveafig.com/Twitter - https://twitter.com/profplum99LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-green-9a15142/Simplify - https://www.simplify.us/WTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseasThumbnail image from - https://finance.yahoo.com/video/3-drivers-behind-mondays-market-133332442.html

Interview recorded - 31st of October, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Michael Pento. Michael is the President & Founder of Pento Portfolio Strategies. During our conversation we spoke about his outlook for the economy and markets, the FED expanding their balance sheet, what this means for the 3 bubbles, Financial repression, whether markets will go higher and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:15 - Outlook on the economy and markets2:52 - FED expanding balance sheet7:42 - Debt bubble9:35 - Increase income15:40 - Financial repression18:15 - Markets going high20:28 - One message to takeaway?Michael Pento serves as the President and Founder of Pento Portfolio Strategies (PPS). PPS is a Registered Investment Advisory Firm (RIA) that operates like an actively managed fund without all the expenses. The Model Portfolio uses a proprietary macroeconomic model to determine when and how to invest across an inflation/deflation and economic cycle spectrum. The 20-component model is used to determine the two most important factors when it comes to successful investing: the second derivatives of growth and inflation.Michael Pento - Website - https://pentoport.com/Twitter - https://twitter.com/michaelpento?lang=enLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-pento-a1882917b/WTFinance Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatsea

Interview recorded - 27th of October, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Bob Elliott. Bob is the Co-Founder & CIO of Unlimited Funds. During our conversation we spoke about his outlook on the economy, the AI boom, why households are struggling, Stagflation, markets and more. I hope you enjoy! 0:00 - Introduction0:45 - Outlook on the economy?3:45 - AI boom6:50 - Employment10:18 - Economic data not making sense11:56 - Government shutdown15:36 - Stagflation17:17 - FED actions19:20 - US the strongest economy?20:30 - What does this mean for markets?24:40 - Bond yields26:00 - Losing control of bond market28:57 - Other assets?30:54 - One message to takeaway?Bob Elliott is the Co-Founder, CEO & CIO of Unlimited, which uses machine learning to create index replication ETFs of 2&20 style alternative investments like hedge funds, venture capital & private equity. Prior to founding Unlimited, Bob was a Senior Investment Executive at Bridgewater Associates where he served on the Investment Committee (G7) and created investment strategies across equities, fixed income, credit, exchange rates, and commodities, including many used in the flagship Pure Alpha Fund. He also built and led Ray Dalio’s personal investment research team for almost a decade. He’s the author of hundreds of Bridgewater’s widely read Daily Observations and directly counselled some of the world’s foremost policy makers and institutional investor on economic and investing issues. Bob has also served as an advisor and executive at several startups including CircleUp, an investment company focused on early-stage consumer brands. There he revamped the investment strategy for the company’s $150mln venture funds leveraging big data approaches to improve decision making. He was also the co-founder of GiveWell, a startup charity evaluator which now directs more than $500mln in annual contributions. Bob holds a BA in History and Science from Harvard. Bob Elliott - Website - https://www.unlimitedfunds.com/X - https://twitter.com/bobeunlimited?s=21&t=bEWfVJjh6KcziPA0zpyEPALinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ttoillebobWTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4X - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas

Interview recorded - 17th of October, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Michael Howell. Michael is the Founder & Managing Director of CrossBorder Capital.During our conversation we spoke about the current liquidity outlook, what is happening in China, whether Main Street and Equities can continue to go up and more. 0:00 - Introduction0:19 - Current outlook on liquidity markets25:20 - China31:14 - Cycles speeding up? 32:50 - Main Street and equities going up? 36:50 - One message to takeaway?Michael Howell is CEO of CrossBorder Capital, a London-based FCA registered, independent research and investment company that he founded in 1996. Previously he was Head of Research for Baring Securities and Research Director of Salomon Brothers Inc, the US investment bank. The liquidity methodology he pioneered monitors cross-border flows and Central Bank behaviour across some 80 countries world-wide. Liquidity flows are a central part of CrossBorder Capital's asset allocation advice, which is currently provided to major global investors, including institutional asset managers, government agencies, Central Banks and endowment funds. Michael has been in financial markets since 1981 and is a regular conference speaker and media commentator. He graduated from Bristol and London Universities with a finance doctorate, specialising in Fixed Income.Michael Howell -Website - https://crossbordercapital.com/X - https://twitter.com/crossbordercapLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-howell-357b1416/?originalSubdomain=ukWTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4X - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas

Interview recorded - 13th of October, 2025On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Bill Fleckenstein. Bill is a professional money manager with over 30 years of experience. He writes a writes a daily column and is the author of “Greenspan’s bubbles: the age of ignorance at the federal reserve”.During our conversation we spoke about his economic outlook, market volatility, risk of a market crash, Bill's gameplan and more. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction1:49 - Outlook4:19 - Indexes are converging5:39 - Market volatility7:29 - Financial nihilism 9:03 - Economy strong?9:49 - Market crash?12:13 - Bill’s gameplan 14:03 - Debasement15:59 - Bond market19:14 - Yield curve control20:09 - Inflation23:04 - AI deflationary impact24:19 - Idiosyncratic investments25:59 - One message to takeaway?Bill Fleckenstein is president of Fleckenstein Capital, a money management firm based in Seattle. He writes a daily Market Rap column for his website, Fleckensteincapital.com, as well as the popular column Contrarian Chronicles for MSN Money.Bill Fleckenstein began writing a daily column on the Internet in 1996. Initially, the Market Rap was a daily recap of market events, with an added "Yes, but..." emphasis. "I quickly learned that the contrarian viewpoint was often misrepresented and under-reported. Since then, my daily column has always called it like I see it. I've tried to write the column in a way that even the novice investor can understand. I believe it's better to teach someone how to fish, rather than just give them an occasional fish."Bill Fleckenstein - Website: https://www.fleckensteincapital.com/Twitter: https://x.com/fleckcap?lang=enWTFinance -Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wtfinancee/Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas