Bernard Arnault Full Q&A (Oxford Union)
Bernard Arnault is the Chairman and CEO of the world’s largest and most successful luxury goods conglomerate, LVMH, which controls brands such as Louis Vuitton, Fendi, TAG Heuer, Bulgari and Marc Jacobs. While growing LVMH’s portfolio of prestigious brands at a staggering pace, Arnault made notable investments in companies such as Netflix over ten years ago. In March 2015, Forbes estimated him to be the world’s thirteenth richest person.
Jamie Dimon’s 2015 Letter (JPM)
Related: Brooklyn Investor commentary
Jeff Bezos 2015 Letter (Amazon)
Sam Hinkie’s Letter – Thinking about thinking (ValueWalk)
Probably the longest ever resignation letter.
Semper Augustus Investments Group: 2015 Annual Letter (Value Investing World)
Grant's Spring Conference Notes 2016 - Bessent, Dimon & More (Market Folly)
Russia - a forgotten market? (East Capital)
Djibouti Is Hot (Bloomberg)
How a forgotten sandlot of a country became a hub of international power games.
Rising in the East (60 Minutes)
China's film industry has grown so big so fast, that it is now looking to compete with Hollywood.
This is fascinating - The brain on LSD revealed: first scans show how the drug affects the brain (Imperial College London)
"Our brains become more constrained and compartmentalised as we develop from infancy into adulthood, and we may become more focused and rigid in our thinking as we mature. In many ways, the brain in the LSD state resembles the state our brains were in when we were infants: free and unconstrained. This also makes sense when we consider the hyper-emotional and imaginative nature of an infant's mind."
The sugar conspiracy (Guardian)
In 1972, a British scientist sounded the alarm that sugar – and not fat – was the greatest danger to our health. But his findings were ridiculed and his reputation ruined. How did the world’s top nutrition scientists get it so wrong for so long?
Showing posts with label Links. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Links. Show all posts
Saturday, 16 April 2016
Sunday, 3 April 2016
Weekend reading
Never thought I’d read this in Variety - John Malone: ‘Cable Cowboy’ Faces the Test in Rounding Up the Right Mix of Assets (Variety)
Baijiu: the people’s tipple (FT)
China wants to make its national spirit its next big global export — but there are obstacles
Eiichi Shibusawa - The Father of Modern Capitalism in Japan (Undervalued Japan)
ADVICE FROM HEDGE FUND MANAGER – EDWARD MISRAHI (What I Learnt on Wall Street)
Templeton’s Emerging Markets Guru Mark Mobius Steps Down (Barron's Asia)
Can Sequoia Recover From Its Valeant Stake? (Morningstar)
An Approach to Long-Term Investing in Asia - Koon Boon Kee of The Moat Report Asia (Manual of Ideas)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Chamath Palihapitiya About Investing and Business (25iq)
The Secret to Tony Robbins’ 38 Years of Success (Early to Rise)
This is powerful: "I always tell people — Life supports what supports more life. If you’re trying to support yourself, you’re going to get a certain level of insights. If you’re trying to support your family, you’re going to get a different level of insights. If you’re trying to support your community or humanity, you get insights most people never dream of. That’s really been the secret to my 38 years because those are my real goals."
How People Learn to Become Resilient (New Yorker)
Umberto Eco’s Antilibrary: Why Unread Books Are More Valuable to Our Lives than Read Ones (Brain Pickings)
I got library envy - Why every home should have a library and six examples for sale (FT)
Life’s Work: An Interview with Kevin Spacey (HBR)
It’s incredible to help young people find their own self-esteem and voice and learn collaborative skills. But it’s funny: When you tell them something that’s been passed down to you, some lesson you learned a long time ago, often, in the act of saying it, you think, “Oh, my God. I needed to hear that. It’s really important, and I haven’t been doing it myself.”
Getting to Si, Ja, Oui, Hai, and Da (HBR)
Adam Grant The surprising habits of original thinkers (TED)
WAYNE SHORTER & HERBIE HANCOCK PEN AN OPEN LETTER TO THE NEXT GENERATION OF ARTISTS (Nest HQ)
We’d like to be clear that while this letter is written with an artistic audience in mind, these thoughts transcend professional boundaries and apply to all people, regardless of profession.
While it’s true that the issues facing the world are complex, the answer to peace is simple; it begins with you. You don’t have to be living in a third world country or working for an NGO to make a difference. Each of us has a unique mission. We are all pieces in a giant, fluid puzzle, where the smallest of actions by one puzzle piece profoundly affects each of the others. You matter, your actions matter, your art matters.
If you are into music, highly recommend the following video - Pharrell Williams Masterclass with Students at NYU Clive Davis Institute (YouTube)
Baijiu: the people’s tipple (FT)
China wants to make its national spirit its next big global export — but there are obstacles
Eiichi Shibusawa - The Father of Modern Capitalism in Japan (Undervalued Japan)
ADVICE FROM HEDGE FUND MANAGER – EDWARD MISRAHI (What I Learnt on Wall Street)
Templeton’s Emerging Markets Guru Mark Mobius Steps Down (Barron's Asia)
Can Sequoia Recover From Its Valeant Stake? (Morningstar)
An Approach to Long-Term Investing in Asia - Koon Boon Kee of The Moat Report Asia (Manual of Ideas)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Chamath Palihapitiya About Investing and Business (25iq)
The Secret to Tony Robbins’ 38 Years of Success (Early to Rise)
This is powerful: "I always tell people — Life supports what supports more life. If you’re trying to support yourself, you’re going to get a certain level of insights. If you’re trying to support your family, you’re going to get a different level of insights. If you’re trying to support your community or humanity, you get insights most people never dream of. That’s really been the secret to my 38 years because those are my real goals."
How People Learn to Become Resilient (New Yorker)
Umberto Eco’s Antilibrary: Why Unread Books Are More Valuable to Our Lives than Read Ones (Brain Pickings)
I got library envy - Why every home should have a library and six examples for sale (FT)
Life’s Work: An Interview with Kevin Spacey (HBR)
It’s incredible to help young people find their own self-esteem and voice and learn collaborative skills. But it’s funny: When you tell them something that’s been passed down to you, some lesson you learned a long time ago, often, in the act of saying it, you think, “Oh, my God. I needed to hear that. It’s really important, and I haven’t been doing it myself.”
Getting to Si, Ja, Oui, Hai, and Da (HBR)
Adam Grant The surprising habits of original thinkers (TED)
WAYNE SHORTER & HERBIE HANCOCK PEN AN OPEN LETTER TO THE NEXT GENERATION OF ARTISTS (Nest HQ)
We’d like to be clear that while this letter is written with an artistic audience in mind, these thoughts transcend professional boundaries and apply to all people, regardless of profession.
While it’s true that the issues facing the world are complex, the answer to peace is simple; it begins with you. You don’t have to be living in a third world country or working for an NGO to make a difference. Each of us has a unique mission. We are all pieces in a giant, fluid puzzle, where the smallest of actions by one puzzle piece profoundly affects each of the others. You matter, your actions matter, your art matters.
If you are into music, highly recommend the following video - Pharrell Williams Masterclass with Students at NYU Clive Davis Institute (YouTube)
Saturday, 5 March 2016
Weekend reading
Annual letters from Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates
How Super Angel Chris Sacca Made Billions, Burned Bridges And Crafted The Best Seed Portfolio Ever (Forbes)
How the Panama Canal Got Its Groove Back (Priceonomics)
How Super Angel Chris Sacca Made Billions, Burned Bridges And Crafted The Best Seed Portfolio Ever (Forbes)
China’s state-owned zombie economy (FT)
Reforming a sector burdened by debt and overcapacity is critical to restoring growth in the economy
Macro Roundtable on China (SumZero)
Creating Effective Incentive Systems: Ken Iverson on the Principles that Unleash Human Potential (Farnam Street)
CAPE Strategy Update (Minority Report)
LEVERAGE, FLEXIBILITY & OPPORTUNITY (Cook and Bynum)
A Crisis In Ponzi-Land (The "Drop-Down”) (Part III in Kuppy’s MLP series; Adventures in Capitalism)
Weitz - Valuable Losses (Wealthtrack)
A rare interview with Great Value Investor Wally Weitz on finding opportunities where others are seeing losses
The Road Less Traveled: Special Situations Investing (Value Walk)
Great presentation on how to find special situations ideas from Buckley Capital
Douglas Coupland: The rise and fall of the mall (FT)
Recalling the golden age of the shopping mall and why we may look back on the 1990s as the last good decade
BIG AGRICULTURE GETS ITS SH*T TOGETHER (Fortune)
A huge U.S. dairy is tackling the farm pollution problem by turning cow manure into fuel. Will others follow suit?
A huge U.S. dairy is tackling the farm pollution problem by turning cow manure into fuel. Will others follow suit?
Here's a whole year's worth of weather in one video (Science Alert)
We all know that 2015 was the hottest year on record. But what did that look like exactly? Thanks to all the handy satellites stationed around Earth we now have the ability to watch our weather 24/7 from space. And that also gives us the chance to take a broader perspective and look back on the year that was, thanks to this beautiful time-lapse from weather monitoring organisation EUMETSTAT.
We all know that 2015 was the hottest year on record. But what did that look like exactly? Thanks to all the handy satellites stationed around Earth we now have the ability to watch our weather 24/7 from space. And that also gives us the chance to take a broader perspective and look back on the year that was, thanks to this beautiful time-lapse from weather monitoring organisation EUMETSTAT.
Saturday, 20 February 2016
Weekend reading
Encouraging Words for Aspiring Fund Managers - Arnold Van Den Berg (Manual of Ideas)
Wuhan: China’s Travel Hub (Mark Mobius)
Interesting take on the current MLP landscape. A Crisis In Ponzi-Land (MLP Style) (Adventures in Capitalism; Part 1 and Part 2)
George Soros, Stan Druckenmiller (Money World, May 1, 1994) (Value Walk)
Great write up on Nintendo. Wii Would Like to Invest in Nintendo - SumZero, Yahoo Finance, Write Up
Joshua Kennedy of Sonian Capital Management has earned an impressive 25% avg. total return across 14 ideas on SumZero. His latest thesis, a long on struggling game giant Nintendo (7974:JP), quickly captured a 98% peer-rating, and focuses on a market where Kennedy has demonstrated consistent analytical prowess: Japan. SumZero sat down with Mr. Kennedy to discuss the details of the high-uncertainty, low-risk Nintendo situation, and how the company could be poised to take mobile by storm with its classic characters.
China’s Deal Makers Have Disappointed (DealBook)
THE HABITS OF WINNERS (What I Learnt on Wall Street)
Sir Tim Rice Full Q&A (Oxford Union)
Sir Tim Rice: An Academy Award, Golden Globe, Tony, and Grammy winning lyricist responsible for some of the most iconic musical stage and film productions of all time, including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Evita and The Lion King. Sir Tim is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd-Webber which have become permanent fixtures on stages around the world and are loved by millions across the generations. He was knighted in 1994 for services to music and continues to be a vocal advocate of the power of the musical.
Rhythm and booze: the battle to recruit young drinkers (FT)
For years the drinks industry has poured money into a music scene that celebrates alcohol. How will they react to trends that show their target audience drinking less?
Snowboarder Shaun White interviewed by Tim Ferriss
Wuhan: China’s Travel Hub (Mark Mobius)
Interesting take on the current MLP landscape. A Crisis In Ponzi-Land (MLP Style) (Adventures in Capitalism; Part 1 and Part 2)
George Soros, Stan Druckenmiller (Money World, May 1, 1994) (Value Walk)
Great write up on Nintendo. Wii Would Like to Invest in Nintendo - SumZero, Yahoo Finance, Write Up
Joshua Kennedy of Sonian Capital Management has earned an impressive 25% avg. total return across 14 ideas on SumZero. His latest thesis, a long on struggling game giant Nintendo (7974:JP), quickly captured a 98% peer-rating, and focuses on a market where Kennedy has demonstrated consistent analytical prowess: Japan. SumZero sat down with Mr. Kennedy to discuss the details of the high-uncertainty, low-risk Nintendo situation, and how the company could be poised to take mobile by storm with its classic characters.
China’s Deal Makers Have Disappointed (DealBook)
THE HABITS OF WINNERS (What I Learnt on Wall Street)
Sir Tim Rice Full Q&A (Oxford Union)
Sir Tim Rice: An Academy Award, Golden Globe, Tony, and Grammy winning lyricist responsible for some of the most iconic musical stage and film productions of all time, including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Evita and The Lion King. Sir Tim is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd-Webber which have become permanent fixtures on stages around the world and are loved by millions across the generations. He was knighted in 1994 for services to music and continues to be a vocal advocate of the power of the musical.
Rhythm and booze: the battle to recruit young drinkers (FT)
For years the drinks industry has poured money into a music scene that celebrates alcohol. How will they react to trends that show their target audience drinking less?
Snowboarder Shaun White interviewed by Tim Ferriss
Sunday, 31 January 2016
Weekend reading
Nir Eyal - The Strange (But Effective) Way I Stick to Hard Goals (LinkedIn)
How it Works
Josh Luber on Sneakers, Sneakerheads, and the Second-hand Market (Econtalk)
Emotions: do they control us? (LSE Podcast)
From financial decisions to medical choices and political beliefs, emotion plays a crucial role. What is emotion and what is it good for? How is it represented in the brain and do human emotions differ from other animals? We will discuss the notion that emotion is the primary factor that controls our every action.
How it Works
- Pick your routine. For me, my routine was hitting the gym.
- Book your time. Make time in your schedule for the routine. If you don’t reserve the time as you would booking an appointment or important meeting, the routine won’t happen.
- Find a crisp $100 bill. Other denominations will work too but it has to be an amount you’d hate to lose.
- Find a lighter.
- Buy a wall calendar and place it somewhere you’ll see every day. My calendar is in my closet and it’s the first thing I see when I get dressed in the morning.
- Tape the $100 bill to today’s date in the calendar and place the lighter somewhere visible near the wall calendar.
The Saatchi & Saatchi Story documentary (YouTube)
The story itself is interesting enough but there is an interview segment with a young David Herro, of Harris Associates, from around the 1hour 10min mark, as he is battling the founders of the company.
Can Nikesh Arora Make Softbank the Berkshire Hathaway of Tech? (Fortune)
What Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace’ can teach us (FT)
A Dozen Things I have Learned About Business from Rza (the founder of Wu-Tang Clan) (25iq)
Teaching kids real math with computers (TED)
2015 Bloomberg book list (Bloomberg)
Josh Luber on Sneakers, Sneakerheads, and the Second-hand Market (Econtalk)
Emotions: do they control us? (LSE Podcast)
From financial decisions to medical choices and political beliefs, emotion plays a crucial role. What is emotion and what is it good for? How is it represented in the brain and do human emotions differ from other animals? We will discuss the notion that emotion is the primary factor that controls our every action.
Self-Awareness: How Knowing Yourself Increases The Success in Value Investing (Undervalued Japan)
The Marinelli Bell Foundry (Bloomberg)
This family business in Agnone, Italy, has filled the belfries of churches around the world since at least 1339. Today the shop’s 12 artisans take about three months to produce a single large model. A 600-kilogram (1,323-pound) bell costs about €21,000 ($23,000). Tourists can take home a less hefty holiday edition for €40.
This family business in Agnone, Italy, has filled the belfries of churches around the world since at least 1339. Today the shop’s 12 artisans take about three months to produce a single large model. A 600-kilogram (1,323-pound) bell costs about €21,000 ($23,000). Tourists can take home a less hefty holiday edition for €40.
Sunday, 6 December 2015
Weekend reading
Tren Griffin - Charlie Munger (5 Good Questions)
Related: How does Charlie Munger recommend dealing with adversity? (25iq)
Fantastic talk from Peter Lynch that's worth re-watching once a year - Making Money in the Stock Market: Peter Lynch on Investing in the U.S. Economy (YouTube)
How a “platform company” works (Valuetrap)
How failed JCP Ron Johnson is redeeming himself (Fast Company)
A Vanguard fund manager’s investment philosophy (from Value Investing World) (Vanguard)
Bloomberg ‹GO› Full Episode from 1 December with James Tisch (Bloomberg)
Highly recommend this 3-part Q&A with geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan (author of The Accidental Superpower) (Gavekal)
How Many People Take Credit for Writing a Hit Song? (Priceonomics)
As China’s Workforce Dwindles, the World Scrambles for Alternatives (WSJ)
My year reading a book from every country in the world (TED)
Will MacAskill on Effective Altruism, Y Combinator, and Artificial Intelligence (Tim Ferriss)
Navy SEALs Have a '40 Percent Rule' And It's the Key to Overcoming Mental Barriers (Big Think)
Trailers and clips from the upcoming Big Short movie (Value Walk)
Related: How does Charlie Munger recommend dealing with adversity? (25iq)
Fantastic talk from Peter Lynch that's worth re-watching once a year - Making Money in the Stock Market: Peter Lynch on Investing in the U.S. Economy (YouTube)
How a “platform company” works (Valuetrap)
How failed JCP Ron Johnson is redeeming himself (Fast Company)
A Vanguard fund manager’s investment philosophy (from Value Investing World) (Vanguard)
Bloomberg ‹GO› Full Episode from 1 December with James Tisch (Bloomberg)
Highly recommend this 3-part Q&A with geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan (author of The Accidental Superpower) (Gavekal)
How Many People Take Credit for Writing a Hit Song? (Priceonomics)
As China’s Workforce Dwindles, the World Scrambles for Alternatives (WSJ)
My year reading a book from every country in the world (TED)
Will MacAskill on Effective Altruism, Y Combinator, and Artificial Intelligence (Tim Ferriss)
Navy SEALs Have a '40 Percent Rule' And It's the Key to Overcoming Mental Barriers (Big Think)
Trailers and clips from the upcoming Big Short movie (Value Walk)
Sunday, 22 November 2015
Weekend reading
John Malone: Scale Very Important In Media Space – Full Interview (Value Walk)
Why and how do Munger and Buffett “discount the future cash flows” at the 30-year U.S. Treasury Rate? (25iq)
Visio Capital Management interview on (Opalesque)
Visio is one of the longest-running and largest independent South African hedge fund management companies with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. As of September 2015, Visio’s flagship fund returned 5192% since inception (31.1% average net annual return), with only one down year (2008, -5%)
Jason Zweig interview on demystifying Wall Street (Wealthtrack)
The Single Best Interview Question You Can Ask (Farnam Street)
Surveying the Ghost Cities of China (Priceonomics)
Sir John Templeton Tribute From Franklin Templeton (Value Walk)
It's starting - Foreigners Give Up On Asia As Central Banks Diverge (Barron's)
On a rolling 12-month basis, foreigners became net sellers of Asian equities, data provided by Credit Suisse shows
From Adam Grant (author of Give and Take): The Virtue of Contradicting Ourselves (NY Times)
Children don't ruin women's careers — husbands do, Harvard study finds (National Post)
How Friendships Change in Adulthood (Atlantic)
Does being self-deprecating help or harm you socially? (Hopes and Fears)
Why and how do Munger and Buffett “discount the future cash flows” at the 30-year U.S. Treasury Rate? (25iq)
Visio Capital Management interview on (Opalesque)
Visio is one of the longest-running and largest independent South African hedge fund management companies with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. As of September 2015, Visio’s flagship fund returned 5192% since inception (31.1% average net annual return), with only one down year (2008, -5%)
Jason Zweig interview on demystifying Wall Street (Wealthtrack)
The Single Best Interview Question You Can Ask (Farnam Street)
Surveying the Ghost Cities of China (Priceonomics)
Sir John Templeton Tribute From Franklin Templeton (Value Walk)
It's starting - Foreigners Give Up On Asia As Central Banks Diverge (Barron's)
On a rolling 12-month basis, foreigners became net sellers of Asian equities, data provided by Credit Suisse shows
From Adam Grant (author of Give and Take): The Virtue of Contradicting Ourselves (NY Times)
Children don't ruin women's careers — husbands do, Harvard study finds (National Post)
How Friendships Change in Adulthood (Atlantic)
Does being self-deprecating help or harm you socially? (Hopes and Fears)
Sunday, 8 November 2015
Weekend reading
Howard Buffett Is Getting His Hands Dirty (Bloomberg)
Edge Master Class 2015: A Short Course in Superforecasting (via Value Investing World) (Edge)
Oldest South African hedge fund (Opalesque)
Stan Druckenmiller Interview (Vienna Capitalist)
AMA on Charlie Munger: What did Charlie Munger Learn from Phil Fisher? (25iq)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Charlie Munger (Distilled to less than 500 Words) (25iq)
100-year-old companies: How to Stay on Top for the Long Term (Fortune)
Capital Allocation at Asian Wide-Moat Innovators - probably linked this before but within the article there is a succinct checklist on capital allocation (Beyond Proxy)
A visit to Zimbabwe (Platinum Asset Management)
Jamaican Twofer: Book Review and Notes (Minority Report)
MiB: Mario Gabelli of GAMCO (Ritholtz)
Ahead of the elections this weekend - The New Burma (60 Minutes)
The Marginal Productivity of Chinese Debt Has Gone From Bad to Much Worse – Not Good for the Rebalancing Case (Gavekal)
On a three centuries paper trail at Coutts - The private bank manages its corporate past through a trove of records from wealthy clients (FT)
Sunday, 25 October 2015
Weekend reading
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Charlie Munger about Ethics (25iq)
I was reading this write up on Fastenal (Base Hit Investing) and was reminded of this article (Inc.) from back in the days about their management ethos
Annual review from Platinum Investment Management (Australian value fund) (Platinum)
Claire Barnes' Apollo Asia Fund Q3 Letter (Apollo)
Greenlight Capital Q3 Letter (Value Walk)
William Thorndike: "The Outsiders" (Talks at Google)
How to Not Get Invited Back to Parties (BeyondProxy)
For a high level overview of the asylum seeker situation in Europe watch this 60 Minutes video (CBS)
This documentary (from the founder of 5-Hour Energy) has been making rounds on YouTube lately - Billions in Change (YouTube)
Sunday, 18 October 2015
Weekend reading
Warren Buffett at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Conference (Fortune)
Boosting Our Berkshire Valuation (Morningstar)
Berkshire versus KKR: Intermediary Influence and Competition (SSRN)
Fall 2015 Issue of Graham & Doddsvile (G&D)
Mario Gabelli, Chairman & CEO - GAMCO Investor (One Wire)
Capital Allocation at Asian Wide-Moat Innovators (Beyond Proxy)
Vice documentary on the Japanese diamond business - Taking Down Tokyo's Corrupt Diamond Syndicate (Vice)
For something a bit different - Decadence and Madness at the Top: Inside Britain's Secretive Bullingdon Club (Spiegel)
Boosting Our Berkshire Valuation (Morningstar)
Berkshire versus KKR: Intermediary Influence and Competition (SSRN)
Fall 2015 Issue of Graham & Doddsvile (G&D)
Mario Gabelli, Chairman & CEO - GAMCO Investor (One Wire)
Capital Allocation at Asian Wide-Moat Innovators (Beyond Proxy)
Vice documentary on the Japanese diamond business - Taking Down Tokyo's Corrupt Diamond Syndicate (Vice)
For something a bit different - Decadence and Madness at the Top: Inside Britain's Secretive Bullingdon Club (Spiegel)
Sunday, 11 October 2015
Weekend reading
Thank you to all of you who read, shared and commented on the Rockwood Holdings/Outsiders case study. The response has been overwhelming and I'm glad that this great story of capital allocation and sensible management is out in the public domain.
Quotes From The Symposium Of Warren Buffett And Charlie Munger (Value Walk)
“The nature of acquisitions is that they get to the board at a point where if you turn them down you are rejecting the chief executive, you are embarrassing him in front of his troops, you’re doing all kinds of things. So, it just doesn’t happen.”
Reminds me of a quote from the 2014 Berkshire AGM on how companies select compensation committee members: "Board delegates decision to a compensation committee and they don’t look for Dobermans, they want cocker spaniels with their tails wagging. I voted for compensation plans in various places that were far from perfect"
This is fascinating and shows that forecasting is not an easy subject: What people in 1900 thought the year 2000 would look like (WaPo)
I’m game for (what appears to be) an underwater croquet match if anyone is interested (second to last picture).
Related: Can You See the Future? Probably Better Than Professional Forecasters from Jason Zweig (WSJ)
Great podcast from the London School of Economics on advertising: One plus One Equals Three: a masterclass in creative thinking (LSE)
"Every year in the UK, GBP18.3bn is spent on all forms of advertising and marketing of which 4% is remembered positively, 7% is remembered negatively and 89% isn't noticed or remembered. [...] 17 billion quid is pissed away by so called experts every year." Reminds me of the investment business.
Adam Grant's (author of Give and Take) monthly newsletter (Granted)
Great interview with Joe Koster (of Boyles Asset Management and Value Investing World) on Value Walk (Part 1 and Part 2)
Tom Russo: Global Value Investing (Talks at Google)
Sunday, 4 October 2015
Weekend reading
A fascinating hour long talk from John Burbank at UC Berkeley - Invest in things that have never happened before (Value Walk)
Third Avenue's Q3 2015 letters (Third Ave.)
On a related note, I highly recommend to read the Q2 2015 letter of the credit fund (link here, from page 32). A very succinct description of a Chapter 11 restructuring process
Sohn Canada Investment Conference Notes 2015: Capitalize For Kids (Market Folly)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Charlie Munger about Capital Allocation (25iq)
From Ferraris to Cement, Europe's Rich Families Turn Dealmakers (Bloomberg)
Love story from the FT - Silvio Berlusconi and Vladimir Putin: the odd couple (FT)
Related: Putin interview by Charlie Rose on 60 Minutes (CBS)
Buffett on giving - In the first of the FT's Ambitious Wealth interviews, Warren Buffett says philanthropy is getting younger and going global (FT)
Confirmation Bias: Your Brain is So Judgmental (Big Think)
FT correspondent on how to survive — and thrive — in Hong Kong (FT)
First part of an interesting Vice documentary - How Pablo Escobar's Legacy of Violence Drives Today's Cartel Wars (Vice)
Third Avenue's Q3 2015 letters (Third Ave.)
On a related note, I highly recommend to read the Q2 2015 letter of the credit fund (link here, from page 32). A very succinct description of a Chapter 11 restructuring process
Sohn Canada Investment Conference Notes 2015: Capitalize For Kids (Market Folly)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Charlie Munger about Capital Allocation (25iq)
From Ferraris to Cement, Europe's Rich Families Turn Dealmakers (Bloomberg)
Love story from the FT - Silvio Berlusconi and Vladimir Putin: the odd couple (FT)
Related: Putin interview by Charlie Rose on 60 Minutes (CBS)
Buffett on giving - In the first of the FT's Ambitious Wealth interviews, Warren Buffett says philanthropy is getting younger and going global (FT)
Confirmation Bias: Your Brain is So Judgmental (Big Think)
FT correspondent on how to survive — and thrive — in Hong Kong (FT)
First part of an interesting Vice documentary - How Pablo Escobar's Legacy of Violence Drives Today's Cartel Wars (Vice)
Saturday, 26 September 2015
Weekend reading
A tally of the brief survey suggested that most people seem to think that the correction we have experienced/experience could be sticky, at least for a while and have started to add to positions on a small scale. Thank you for everyone who participated or got in touch separately.
Now onto the selection of weekend readings.
Why bother cooking the books if no one reads them? (FT)
A discussion about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with Bethany McLean and Bill Ackman (Charlie Rose)
Now onto the selection of weekend readings.
Why bother cooking the books if no one reads them? (FT)
Nicolas Berggruen is on a crusade for ideas (FT)
Cove Street Capital - Strategy Letter No. 22 Paleo Investing (CSC)
A discussion about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with Bethany McLean and Bill Ackman (Charlie Rose)
Sanjay Bakshi on Reading, Mental Models, Worldly Wisdom, and Investing (Farnam Street)
The striking partnership of Alex Ferguson and Michael Moritz (FT)
The Scariest Navy SEAL Imaginable…And What He Taught Me (Tim Ferriss)
Recommended book on the topic: No Hero: The Evolution of a Navy SEAL (Amazon)
Jeroen Bos: The Genesis Of My Book On Value Investing (Value Walk)
Rising Strong: Lessons for Value Investors in the Turnaround Story of Bata India (Beyond Proxy)
The Best Way To Be Smart … Is To Not Be Stupid. a16z interviews the author of 25iq, Tren Griffin (a16z)
The Art of Value Investing: The Fiction That is a Fact (Undervalued Japan)
William MacAskill on Effective Altruism and Doing Good Better (Econ Talk)
Why Bill and Melinda Gates Call Themselves “Impatient Optimists” (Vanity Fair)
John McAfee – The Most Interesting Man in the Universe (James Altucher)
Interview with Michael Jordan's Personal Trainer, Tim Grover (Tai Lopez)
Sunday, 13 September 2015
Weekend reading
Charlie Munger on Avoiding Computers (Farnam Street)
Munger: People calculate too much and think too little
Don’t fret about the data, China’s GDP forecast to be good news (FT)
China’s economic data for September will not be collated until early next month, but the ruling Chinese Communist party has already decided they will bring cheering news. “The focus for the month of September will be strengthening economic propaganda and . . . promoting the discourse on China’s bright economic future and the superiority of China’s system,” the party’s propaganda department said in a directive to national media outlets.
Jim Rogers exits India, says one can’t invest just on hope (Live Mint)
Munger: People calculate too much and think too little
Don’t fret about the data, China’s GDP forecast to be good news (FT)
China’s economic data for September will not be collated until early next month, but the ruling Chinese Communist party has already decided they will bring cheering news. “The focus for the month of September will be strengthening economic propaganda and . . . promoting the discourse on China’s bright economic future and the superiority of China’s system,” the party’s propaganda department said in a directive to national media outlets.
Living the Chinese dream (FT)
From poverty to superwealth: three Chinese billionaires tell their extraordinary rags-to-riches stories. But is the dream over for the next generation?
China fooled the world, and now comes the Great Unwinding (FT)
As Sales Slump, Hong Kong’s Luxury Jewelers Think Local (WSJ ChinaRealTime)
For those holding Luk Fook, Chow Tai Fook or Chow Sang Sang shares
Jim Rogers exits India, says one can’t invest just on hope (Live Mint)
Jeff Ubben On What He Learned From Peter Lynch (Value Walk)
Of would-be $1B fees, trips to Omaha and hardball negotiating: Behind the scenes of the Precision-Berkshire deal (via Value Investing World) (Bizjournals)
A great online course from Yale - Introduction to Negotiation: A Strategic Playbook for Becoming a Principled and Persuasive Negotiator (Coursera)
Sugar addiction – breaking the cycle (Platinum)
The Platinum Group (Australian value fund) has done a very good study on sugar, it's implications on health and as an investment theme. Worth looking through it
How to Live Wisely (NYT)
Why the 'happiest' cities are boring (FT)
It was Harry Lime, played by Orson Welles in Graham Greene’s The Third Man, who famously got to the heart of the matter. (The 1949 film noir is set in the immediate postwar era when Vienna was a much more exciting, but much less liveable, city than it is today). Lime says: “In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love, they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”
It was Harry Lime, played by Orson Welles in Graham Greene’s The Third Man, who famously got to the heart of the matter. (The 1949 film noir is set in the immediate postwar era when Vienna was a much more exciting, but much less liveable, city than it is today). Lime says: “In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love, they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”
Tara Brach on Meditation and Overcoming FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) (Tim Ferriss)
How to breathe - Steve Maxwell on Gracie Breathing Techniques (London Real)
Sunday, 6 September 2015
Back to school reading
Summer is over and this fact couldn't have been made more clearer by the recent volatility in the markets. To this end I'd be quite curious to see what you think of the events. I've set up an informal survey (to the right of this post) and would be grateful if you could please take a minute to complete it. I'll be sharing the results next weekend. Thank you!
Below is a selection of articles, book, interviews, podcasts and videos I read and saw in the last few weeks. Hope you'll find them useful. Regular posting will resume shortly.
Articles
EU refugee crisis: End of an ideal (FT) and, What is the Europe migrant crisis and how has it evolved? (FT)
The World According to China (NY Times)
How farmers from rural China bet on the stock market and lost (Washington Post)
Would Chinese-style education work on British kids? (BBC)
The Biggest Gamble: Can Macau Beat the Odds? (Bloomberg)
Cooling of China’s Stock Market Dents Major Driver of Economic Growth (NY Times)
Jim Chanos interviewed on Full Disclosure re China and a related article from the WSJ
Only 6% Investors Think China Is Growing At 7% (Barron's)
This game will show you just how foolish it is to sell stocks right now (Quartz)
Highly recommend reading the winning pitches (JD.com and Zhaopin) of SumZero's China TMT competition. Both are great write ups.
Berkshire Hathaway’s Bright Future (Barron's)
One of the best resources of Warren's and Charlie's wisdom (via Value Investing World) (BuffettFAQ)
Fosun defiant over its firepower after share price fall (FT)
Mahindra & Mahindra: India’s Own Version of Berkshire Hathaway? (Beyond Proxy)
Getting To Know Bill Ackman: Six Part Series (Value Walk)
Two posts on Colombia from Harris Kupperman and the guys at Capitalist Exploits
Value Investing and the Art of Reading the Air (Undervalued Japan)
The 10 Richest People of All Time (Time)
Meditation: Why Bother? (Farnam Street)
Not an Introvert, Not an Extrovert? You May Be An Ambivert (WSJ)
Study: The kinds of friendships you have in your 20s and 30s predicts your well-being later in life (Quartz)
Podcasts
EconTalk: Jesse Ausubel on Agriculture, Technology, and the Return of Nature, Rachel Laudan on the History of Food and Cuisine and Summer Brennan on Wilderness, Politics and the Oyster War
Interview with Carol Loomis (Longform Podcast)
Interview with Howard Marks (Masters in Business)
Making sense of the Islamic State: An Organic Crisis in Arab Politics (London School of Economics)
Videos
Jim Simons: A rare interview with the mathematician who cracked Wall Street (TED)
How the mysterious dark net is going mainstream (TED)
CBS 60 minutes: with Chinese tennis player Li Na (also watch her hilarious speech after winning the 2014 Australian Open) and a fascinating spy story from the Cold War
Books
Jonathan Haidt - Happiness Hypothesis (Amazon)
Michael Singer - The Surrender Experiment (Amazon)
Blake Mycoskie - Start Something that Matters (Amazon)
Barry Schwartz - The Paradox of Choice (Amazon)
Ronald Chan - Behind the Berkshire Hathaway Curtain (Amazon)
John Kralik - Simple Act of Gratitude (Amazon)
Saturday, 25 July 2015
Weekend reading
One from the archives: James Montier's 2006 paper titled the "Little Note that Beats the Market"
"In general we find that the EBIT/EV value strategy is very powerful. For instance in the UK, it
outperforms the equally weighted market by nearly 13% p.a. over our sample! Performing even better than the Little Book strategy! A pure value strategy based on this modified earnings yield seems to perform particularly strongly in the US and UK.
However, pure value strategies may have added career risk for professional investors. We show that a pure value strategy suffered far worse during the bubble years, than the Little Book strategy. So a fund manager following the Little Book strategy was unlikely to have been fired whilst a pure value fund manager would have found their life very uncomfortable."
Peter Lynch's investment principles (originally on Value Walk)
Peter's Principle #7: The extravagance of any corporate office is directly proportional to management's reluctance to reward shareholders
Peter's Principle #17: All else being equal, invest in the company with the fewest colour photographs in the annual report
Buffett’s Error of Omission in Disney — Magic Innovators in Asia? (BeyondProxy)
Great collection of Japan related articles and analysis from Undervaluedjapan
Breakingviews, Nikkei and Dealbook on the recent purchase of the Financial Times
A very well written primer on John Malone and his empire (Jnvestor)
Morgan Downey, the author of Oil 101, interviewed on the Investors Podcast
The interview is pretty good but the book is highly recommended for its straightforward description of the oil industry.
Warren Buffett, and Bill and Melinda Gates on Charlie Rose
Dr. Henry Kissinger fireside chat with Eric Schmidt (Google Talks)
They talk a bit about his most recent book World Order, as well as other recent political developments. My favourite book from him is Diplomacy, which does a wonderful job of describing the history of international relations (and the good news is that it is also somewhat shorter than the Lord of the Rings trilogy). Would also recommend his book on China titled very fittingly On China. The Economist TV ads at the beginning of the video are priceless (as is the whole interview)
Howard Marks interviewed by Barry Ritholtz (Ritholtz)
Billion-Dollar Bloodlines: America’s Richest Families 2015 (Early to Rise)
History of the NBA in Africa (NBA)
Europe's Demographic Tides (Cook and Bynum)
A new map created by Germany’s BBSR shows in greater detail than has been previously available the population shifts impacting Europe. The BBSR collected data between 2001 and 2011. While that might sound slightly outdated, these are actually the most up-to-date figures Europe has to offer, as 2011 is the most recent year for which comprehensive population data is available for the whole of Europe. According to its makers, the map provides a level of detail previously unavailable, as it is the first ever to collect data published by all of Europe’s municipalities. The results are impressively comprehensive and reveal a few surprises
"In general we find that the EBIT/EV value strategy is very powerful. For instance in the UK, it
outperforms the equally weighted market by nearly 13% p.a. over our sample! Performing even better than the Little Book strategy! A pure value strategy based on this modified earnings yield seems to perform particularly strongly in the US and UK.
However, pure value strategies may have added career risk for professional investors. We show that a pure value strategy suffered far worse during the bubble years, than the Little Book strategy. So a fund manager following the Little Book strategy was unlikely to have been fired whilst a pure value fund manager would have found their life very uncomfortable."
Peter Lynch's investment principles (originally on Value Walk)
Peter's Principle #7: The extravagance of any corporate office is directly proportional to management's reluctance to reward shareholders
Peter's Principle #17: All else being equal, invest in the company with the fewest colour photographs in the annual report
Buffett’s Error of Omission in Disney — Magic Innovators in Asia? (BeyondProxy)
Great collection of Japan related articles and analysis from Undervaluedjapan
Breakingviews, Nikkei and Dealbook on the recent purchase of the Financial Times
A very well written primer on John Malone and his empire (Jnvestor)
Morgan Downey, the author of Oil 101, interviewed on the Investors Podcast
The interview is pretty good but the book is highly recommended for its straightforward description of the oil industry.
Warren Buffett, and Bill and Melinda Gates on Charlie Rose
Dr. Henry Kissinger fireside chat with Eric Schmidt (Google Talks)
They talk a bit about his most recent book World Order, as well as other recent political developments. My favourite book from him is Diplomacy, which does a wonderful job of describing the history of international relations (and the good news is that it is also somewhat shorter than the Lord of the Rings trilogy). Would also recommend his book on China titled very fittingly On China. The Economist TV ads at the beginning of the video are priceless (as is the whole interview)
Howard Marks interviewed by Barry Ritholtz (Ritholtz)
Billion-Dollar Bloodlines: America’s Richest Families 2015 (Early to Rise)
History of the NBA in Africa (NBA)
Europe's Demographic Tides (Cook and Bynum)
A new map created by Germany’s BBSR shows in greater detail than has been previously available the population shifts impacting Europe. The BBSR collected data between 2001 and 2011. While that might sound slightly outdated, these are actually the most up-to-date figures Europe has to offer, as 2011 is the most recent year for which comprehensive population data is available for the whole of Europe. According to its makers, the map provides a level of detail previously unavailable, as it is the first ever to collect data published by all of Europe’s municipalities. The results are impressively comprehensive and reveal a few surprises
Sunday, 19 July 2015
Weekend reading
Bloomberg special report on Asian hedge funds (Bloomberg)
Greenlight Capital's Q2 2015 letter (Value Walk)
Claire Barnes' Q2 2015 letter (Apollo Asia)
Platinum Asset Management (Australian-listed value investing firm) Q2 2015 letters to investors (Platinum)
Continuing series from the Observer - excerpts from the book Great Minds of Investing:
Mario Gabelli, Bill Ackman, Joel Greenblatt and 10 Warren Buffett quotes
Pat Dorsey Follows Buffett’s Lessons to Pick Stocks (Barron's)
Samsung: The activist vs the ‘owners’ (FT). Highlights of EM corporate governance...
One more related to the subject from Breakingviews
On corporate governance in Asia, here is a telling tale from Japan (Undervaluedjapan)
Infamous Japanese Activist Returns in Father-Daughter Team (Bloomberg)
Iran: The oil and gas multibillion-dollar ‘candy store’ (FT)
Oldie but goodie, in the context of what's going on in Europe - A Primer on the Euro Breakup: Default, Exit and Devaluation as the Optimal Solution from Jonathan Tepper (Policy Exchange)
“Did you ever think that making a speech on economics is a lot like pissing down your leg? It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else.” - President Lyndon B. Johnson
It was with President Johnson’s salty humor in mind that the author decided to write this paper in plain English for the layperson in order to reach as wide an audience as possible. The paper is, however, based on a wide review of economic and legal academic and professional literature.
What Drug Dealers Can Learn From Walgreens, with Stephen J. Dubner (Big Think)
Two recent podcasts from the LSE: decoding glamour and on finding nature's deep design
Alvin Roth on Matching Markets (EconTalk)
Jim Kwik: Brain Coach and Superhero (interview with James Altucher)
The math behind basketball's wildest moves (TED)
For something lighter. BBC documentary on Richard Branson's Necker island in the Caribbean (YouTube)
Summer Reading Book Review: One Summer - America 1927 (Minority Report)
Great quote from Stan Druckenmiller - The Secret to Good Returns (csinvesting)
"The first thing I heard when I got in the business, not from my mentor, was bulls make money, bears make money, and pigs get slaughtered. I'm here to tell you I was a pig. And I strongly believe the only way to make long-term returns in our business that are superior is by being a pig. I think diversification and all the stuff they're teaching at business school today is probably the most misguided concept everywhere. And if you look at all the great investors that are as different as Warren Buffett, Carl Icahn, Ken Langone, they tend to be very, very concentrated bets. They see something, they bet it, and they bet the ranch on it. And that's kind of the way my philosophy evolved, which was if you see - only maybe one or two times a year do you see something that really, really excites you. And if you look at what excites you and then you look down the road, your record on those particular transactions is far superior to everything else, but the mistake I'd say 98 percent of money managers and individuals make is they feel like they got to be playing in a bunch of stuff. And if you really see it, put all your eggs in one basket and then watch the basket very carefully."
Greenlight Capital's Q2 2015 letter (Value Walk)
Claire Barnes' Q2 2015 letter (Apollo Asia)
Platinum Asset Management (Australian-listed value investing firm) Q2 2015 letters to investors (Platinum)
Continuing series from the Observer - excerpts from the book Great Minds of Investing:
Mario Gabelli, Bill Ackman, Joel Greenblatt and 10 Warren Buffett quotes
Pat Dorsey Follows Buffett’s Lessons to Pick Stocks (Barron's)
Samsung: The activist vs the ‘owners’ (FT). Highlights of EM corporate governance...
One more related to the subject from Breakingviews
On corporate governance in Asia, here is a telling tale from Japan (Undervaluedjapan)
Infamous Japanese Activist Returns in Father-Daughter Team (Bloomberg)
Iran: The oil and gas multibillion-dollar ‘candy store’ (FT)
Oldie but goodie, in the context of what's going on in Europe - A Primer on the Euro Breakup: Default, Exit and Devaluation as the Optimal Solution from Jonathan Tepper (Policy Exchange)
“Did you ever think that making a speech on economics is a lot like pissing down your leg? It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else.” - President Lyndon B. Johnson
It was with President Johnson’s salty humor in mind that the author decided to write this paper in plain English for the layperson in order to reach as wide an audience as possible. The paper is, however, based on a wide review of economic and legal academic and professional literature.
What Drug Dealers Can Learn From Walgreens, with Stephen J. Dubner (Big Think)
Two recent podcasts from the LSE: decoding glamour and on finding nature's deep design
Alvin Roth on Matching Markets (EconTalk)
Jim Kwik: Brain Coach and Superhero (interview with James Altucher)
The math behind basketball's wildest moves (TED)
For something lighter. BBC documentary on Richard Branson's Necker island in the Caribbean (YouTube)
Summer Reading Book Review: One Summer - America 1927 (Minority Report)
Great quote from Stan Druckenmiller - The Secret to Good Returns (csinvesting)
"The first thing I heard when I got in the business, not from my mentor, was bulls make money, bears make money, and pigs get slaughtered. I'm here to tell you I was a pig. And I strongly believe the only way to make long-term returns in our business that are superior is by being a pig. I think diversification and all the stuff they're teaching at business school today is probably the most misguided concept everywhere. And if you look at all the great investors that are as different as Warren Buffett, Carl Icahn, Ken Langone, they tend to be very, very concentrated bets. They see something, they bet it, and they bet the ranch on it. And that's kind of the way my philosophy evolved, which was if you see - only maybe one or two times a year do you see something that really, really excites you. And if you look at what excites you and then you look down the road, your record on those particular transactions is far superior to everything else, but the mistake I'd say 98 percent of money managers and individuals make is they feel like they got to be playing in a bunch of stuff. And if you really see it, put all your eggs in one basket and then watch the basket very carefully."
Sunday, 12 July 2015
Weekend reading
On the recent events in the Chinese market:
Story of China Still Intact Despite Market Downturn (Mobius)
Uncertainty persists despite China's stock bounce (Asian Review)
Market turbulence in China tests Xi’s reform agenda (FT)
Kerr Neilson's, portfolio manager of the Platinum International Fund, take on the Chinese stock market (Barron's)
Activist investors love spin-offs. Here’s why you should, too (Fortune)
Male Investors vs. Female Investors (WSJ)
The Rise of Asia’s Wide-Moat Machine Innovators (Beyond Proxy)
Meet Leon Cooperman, CEO & Founder Of Omega Advisors (Value Walk)
Our heretical (and not-so-simple) views on the Greek referendum (Alcimos; originally found on Vienna Capitalist)
Billionaire Rales brothers ready for a new act in split of Danaher (Washington Post)
The Inside Story of How the iPhone Crippled BlackBerry (WSJ)
A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Ben Horowitz about Management, Investing and Business (25iq)
On Philanthropy: A Conversation with Oscar Tang, Ronnie Chan and Steve Schwarzman (Value Walk)
Graphics of languages spoken across the world (SCMP)
George Mumford, who was the psychology and mindfulness coach to Phil Jackson's teams in the NBA, recently published a great book called the Mindful Athlete, which I highly recommend. Chapter 1 of the book is excerpted on his website
Recent podcasts I've listened to:
Mimi Ikonn interviewed by Brian Rose (London Real)
Sam Harris on Tim Ferriss' podcast
Sunday, 5 July 2015
Weekend reading
Barry Ritholtz interviews Richard Thaler and Leon Cooperman
Tom Gayner: The evolution of a value investor (Talks at Google)
A dozen things I've learned from Leon Cooperman about investing (25iq)
Interview with Peter Cundill protege Tim McElvaine on Japan (Manual of Ideas)
Todd Sullivan on creating shareholder value through buybacks (Manual of Ideas)
Growth Matters (Mobius)
How Fanuc quietly took over the world (Nikkei Asian Review)
A prisoner ID in one hand - and a CFO award in the other (FT)
Former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow says that following accounting rules to the letter contributed to the infamous collapse of the US energy trader and landed him in jail.
Life after default: Malaysia's tips for Greece (Breakingviews)
As he prepares for a referendum that could determine Greece's future in the euro zone Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras could seek some inspiration from Mahathir Mohamad, Malaysia's leader during the 1998 financial crisis. Breakingviews imagines a conversation between the two.
Ad man Rory Sutherland, vice chairman of Ogilvy, interviewed by Brian Rose (London Real). Also linking a few of his earlier TED talks, which are a joy to watch (here, here and here)
Your questions about sleep, answered (RAND blog)
How Shake Shack leads the better burger revolution (Fast Company)
Tom Gayner: The evolution of a value investor (Talks at Google)
A dozen things I've learned from Leon Cooperman about investing (25iq)
Interview with Peter Cundill protege Tim McElvaine on Japan (Manual of Ideas)
Todd Sullivan on creating shareholder value through buybacks (Manual of Ideas)
Growth Matters (Mobius)
How Fanuc quietly took over the world (Nikkei Asian Review)
A prisoner ID in one hand - and a CFO award in the other (FT)
Former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow says that following accounting rules to the letter contributed to the infamous collapse of the US energy trader and landed him in jail.
Life after default: Malaysia's tips for Greece (Breakingviews)
As he prepares for a referendum that could determine Greece's future in the euro zone Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras could seek some inspiration from Mahathir Mohamad, Malaysia's leader during the 1998 financial crisis. Breakingviews imagines a conversation between the two.
Ad man Rory Sutherland, vice chairman of Ogilvy, interviewed by Brian Rose (London Real). Also linking a few of his earlier TED talks, which are a joy to watch (here, here and here)
Your questions about sleep, answered (RAND blog)
How Shake Shack leads the better burger revolution (Fast Company)
Saturday, 27 June 2015
Weekend reading
There was a short report circulating on RexLot this week. I was fortunate enough never to pull the trigger upon more investigation into the background of the principals and some issues with the accounting as well (these contained my initial excitement). A few more items go on the checklist!
Related articles from the FT on China and North Korea:
North Korea and the secrets of Office 39 (FT)
China in Africa: how Sam Pa became a middleman (FT)
Somewhat related: This is what it's like to teach in North Korea (TED)
The usual China section in the weekend reading links:
Article by George Soros, on a partnership with China to avoid a world war (NY Books)
Aung San Suu Kyi goes to China (Chatham House)
New Yorker profile on Xi Jinping (New Yorker)
Thoughts on China (Minority Report)
Recent Wall Street Week episodes with Leon Cooperman and Ken Langone
Howard Marks, the uncomfortably idiosyncratic billionaire (Observer)
Few articles on Japanese activism: Japan opens up to outside directors (WSJ) and recent Sohn HK conference write up (Stockpucker). One more post from Undervalued Japan about the misconceptions of investing in Japan
Crispin Odey, of Odey Asset Management, profiled in Institutional Investor (Institutional Investor)
Recent Jim Rogers interview (Chris Martenson)
Loneliness of the short seller (NY Times)
Two talks from EconTalk: food, agriculture and Cargill, and Hollywood and the future of work
The art of profitability: a look at 23 profit models (Value Walk)
Related articles from the FT on China and North Korea:
North Korea and the secrets of Office 39 (FT)
China in Africa: how Sam Pa became a middleman (FT)
Somewhat related: This is what it's like to teach in North Korea (TED)
The usual China section in the weekend reading links:
Article by George Soros, on a partnership with China to avoid a world war (NY Books)
Aung San Suu Kyi goes to China (Chatham House)
New Yorker profile on Xi Jinping (New Yorker)
Thoughts on China (Minority Report)
Recent Wall Street Week episodes with Leon Cooperman and Ken Langone
Howard Marks, the uncomfortably idiosyncratic billionaire (Observer)
Few articles on Japanese activism: Japan opens up to outside directors (WSJ) and recent Sohn HK conference write up (Stockpucker). One more post from Undervalued Japan about the misconceptions of investing in Japan
Crispin Odey, of Odey Asset Management, profiled in Institutional Investor (Institutional Investor)
Recent Jim Rogers interview (Chris Martenson)
Loneliness of the short seller (NY Times)
Two talks from EconTalk: food, agriculture and Cargill, and Hollywood and the future of work
The art of profitability: a look at 23 profit models (Value Walk)
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