I am the former partner of a Tiger Cub and former Head of Research at a second multi-billion hedge fund. I now have a training business and this thread explains what I do and the free resources I make available.

Everyone worries about value traps. @Greenbackd Tobias Carlisle thinks investors should worry about quality traps too. We discuss: • Buffett + Sun Tzu • avoiding ruin • why Kelly can mislead investors • Buffett's misunderstood deals • why Toby has changed his mind on quality • AI: great technology ≠ great investment A really enjoyable conversation with a serious value investor. 🎧 Behind the Balance Sheet #64 behindthebalancesheet.com/po…

Private equity has bought itself time. The problem is that time is getting more expensive. Bain says a buyout that needed 5% annual EBITDA growth a decade ago now needs ~12% to generate the same return. Meanwhile: • holding periods ≈ 7 years • $3.8tn of unrealised PE assets • distributions near GFC-era lows • bond yields rising • credit spreads widening I rebuilt the return maths using today's higher acquisition multiples. The hurdle is formidable. Check out the newsletter: behindthebalancesheet.substa…

Some of the most valuable corporate assets never appear on a balance sheet. Culture. Reputation. Customer loyalty. Trust. And trust has a nasty asymmetry: “Trust grows at the speed of a coconut tree and falls as fast as a coconut.” @rorysutherland My latest Behind the Balance Sheet looks at what Nudgestock '26 taught me about: • why “efficiency” can destroy value • how companies build - and lose - trust • why investors are dangerously overconfident • the small signals that can reveal management behaviour before it reaches the numbers The Most Valuable Asset You Can't Measure behindthebalancesheet.substa…

The replies to this are hilarious. British humour.

Bryony and Matt are spending £820,000 on a modern, high-performance home on the Cornish coast - designed to meet the highest environmental standards. Will they pull it off? 📺 NEW Grand Designs | Tonight, 9pm | Channel 4

Is university still worth it? The graduate earnings premium is falling, sharply in the UK, while the cost of getting a degree remains expensive. Plus: an AI bull vs an AI bear, Tim Harford on the dangers of data, and Michael Moritz on picking winners. This week's Behind the Balance Sheet: behindthebalancesheet.substa…

The SEC wants to encourage more companies to list. Its solution? Allow ~81% of reporting companies to disclose less. Less revenue/cost detail. Less on related parties and investments. Less auditor oversight. Different accounting standards for some IPOs. This strikes me as exactly backwards. The risk of fraud increases significantly. This week's BTBS: behindthebalancesheet.substa…

AI Agents and the Future of Financial Decision-Making Industry generally is navigating how to use AI agents. The financial services sector faces three particular issues: Decisions can have significant and immediate financial consequences. Regulatory compliance is essential. There are massive amounts of data which changes constantly. Join me and the team in the banner for a webinar to explore this important topic.   alpha-sense.com/resources/we…

How Rich Pzena's dad made and lost a fortune and left an impression on him piped.video/Kxg88AGlS0Y?si=HVST…

"My grandmother is a better investor than you." A client actually said that to Rich Pzena after his firm underperformed the S&P by 60 percentage points during the dot-com bubble. Today he manages $80bn. In this episode we discuss: • Buying stocks on <10x normalised earnings • Why 40% of investments can fail • Spotting temporary vs permanent problems • Building conviction through brutal drawdowns And why common sense beats complexity. I really enjoyed our conversation. So will you. behindthebalancesheet.com/po…

18 books. 6 months. 5 must-reads. I have just published my 2026 H1 book awards and a review round-up in my Substack. Including best book, a standout investing title and a disappointment. behindthebalancesheet.substa…

In January Terry Smith told me that : "..there are these phases in markets and that they will knock you off course. And if you decide to change strategy in the middle of them, you may be knocked off course forever, actually." This week Fundsmith announced: • 50%+ portfolio turnover • 12 new holdings • 13 exits • More emphasis on momentum I compare what Terry said then with what Fundsmith has done now. The bigger question isn't whether he's right. It's whether this is adaptation... or capitulation. My latest Substack: behindthebalancesheet.substa…

The Business of Luxury I did a webinar with Sascha R. Rowold, acting CMO to LVMH, talking about the luxury sector and whether recent adverse trends are cyclical or structural. Here Sascha explains the difference and similarities between products and experiences. The challenge for luxury is to combine product and experiences. Watch the full recording here: alpha-sense.com/resources/we…

British humour.

Gooooo Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

My lovely sponsor @AlphaSenseInc is giving my followers a very special offer: How many positions have you passed on simply because there wasn't enough time to go deep? AlphaSense AI-Led Expert Calls run expert interviews on your behalf, so coverage gaps become a thing of the past. They are offering 3 free calls from Tegus by AlphaSense. Full details: alpha-sense.com/free-ai-led-…

I did a webinar with Sascha R. Rowold, acting CMO to LVMH, talking about the luxury sector and whether recent adverse trends are cyclical or structural. Here Sascha explains the fundamental difference between LVMH and Hermes. alpha-sense.com/resources/we…

Jeremy Grantham on bubbles. A conference idea that made me look twice. And why Ferrari's future may not be what enthusiasts want it to be. Three things that challenged my thinking this week. This week's newsletter: behindthebalancesheet.substa…

I am teaming up again with Sascha Rowold, ex Birkenstck CEO, to discuss the outlook for the luxury sector. The sector faces multiple challenges: economic slowdown in China, more local brand competition there; & a normalisation of post-Covid growth Many luxury stocks are well down from the highs. Hear the thoughts of an industry leader as to what matters for luxury next. alpha-sense.com/resources/we…

Luxury Sector Last year, I did an interview with Sascha Rowold, Acting Chief Marketing Officer at LVMH, discussing what had happened at Kering and asking if it could recover. A year or so on, we are teaming up again to discuss the outlook for the luxury sector. The sector faces challenges particularly in China, a key market where younger consumers in particular are being drawn to new local brands. Meanwhile, the backdrop of a slowing economy and property price pressures are unhelpful to wealthier consumers’ propensity to spend. Register now: alpha-sense.com/resources/we…