We Study Billionaires - The Investor’s Podcast Network TIP790: Wealth Beyond Money w/ Thomas Mueller-Borja
Thomas Mueller-Borja, BlackRock’s Global Co-Head of Real Estate and Value-Add CIO, manages a multi-billion-dollar real estate business. He discusses how large fundraises get built, links public debt and rates to real estate cap rates, and explains choosing the right games to win. He also talks about building high-quality relationships, balancing ambition with contentment, and routines for peak performance.
01:19:57
A Day Split Across Time Zones
- Thomas described a travel-heavy typical day balancing committees across time zones and flights.
- He chairs investment committees early in the morning, visits asset sites, and reads deal papers on flights.
Fundraising And Life's Biggest Win
- Raising his first fund in 2015 was the hardest year of Thomas's life but led to meeting his wife.
- He ranks meeting his wife as more important than the fundraising achievement.
Run Closed‑End Funds With Clear Capital Calls
- Use closed-ended fund structures and capital calls to manage investor commitments.
- Coordinate subscription documents, capital calls, and SPV flow to acquire assets cleanly.
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Intro
00:00 • 1min
Role and daily life as BlackRock real estate CIO
01:28 • 5min
Travel, in-person relationships, and asset visits
06:15 • 2min
Fund structure and investor base
08:01 • 11min
How BlackRock raises large funds systematically
19:28 • 3min
Ad break
22:24 • 4min
Investment committee process and governance
26:02 • 3min
Public debt, rates and real estate cap rates
29:22 • 4min
Measuring performance and meritocracy at scale
32:53 • 4min
How William Green and the community influenced him
37:06 • 6min
Culture contrast: Omaha versus Milken
42:39 • 3min
Identifying high-quality people and recruiting criteria
45:35 • 6min
Ad break
51:17 • 3min
Flow, meditation, sleep and peak productivity
54:12 • 4min
Travel's impact on energy and performing well
58:17 • 4min
Choosing games to play and balancing ambition with contentment
01:02:47 • 6min
Learning from parents, mentors and unexpected sources
01:08:22 • 2min
Balancing honesty and kindness in decisions
01:09:58 • 5min
The white knight complex and ethical compulsions
01:15:16 • 3min
Books Thomas is reading and learning habits
01:18:19 • 5min
Outro
01:23:18 • 55sec
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In this episode, Stig Brodersen speaks with Thomas Mueller-Borja, the Global Co-Head of Real Estate and Global CIO for Value-Add Real Estate at BlackRock. They explore how great investors define games they can win, balance ambition with contentment, and build high-quality relationships.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN: 00:00:00 - Intro 00:02:22 - What happens when BlackRock raises and deploys billions of dollars 00:29:31 - How the public debt situation across the developed world may influence your investment framework 00:46:47 - How to build high-quality relationships 01:04:03 - How to define and win the right games 01:10:11 - How to balance honesty and kindness 01:17:17 - Frameworks for choosing the bigger life
Disclaimer: Slight discrepancies in the timestamps may occur due to podcast platform differences.
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