The Julia La Roche Show #306 Chris Whalen: Markets Running Out of Buyers, Fed Flying Blind & Setting Up for 2018-Style Repo Crisis
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Nov 15, 2025 
Chris Whalen, chairman of Whalen Global Advisors and author of The Institutional Risk Analyst, dives deep into the current market landscape. He highlights troubling signs reminiscent of the November 2018 crisis, with tightening liquidity and market volatility. Whalen discusses the Fed's challenges in measuring reserve availability and anticipates potential shifts in interest rates. He also analyzes Bitcoin's pullback and the pressures facing private credit, suggesting investors should reconsider their allocations in gold and other tangible assets.
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2018 Repo Stress Has Striking Parallels
- November 2018 echoed today: shrinking Fed balance sheet plus rate rises caused repo stress.
- The Fed's liquidity models were inadequate then and risk leaving them 'flying blind' now.
Expect Fed To Add Reserves If Markets Falter
- If markets weaken materially, expect the Fed to ease and add reserves quickly.
- Prepare for potential December rate cut and active reserve injections at year-end.
Standing Repo Helps But Pockets Remain
- The Standing Repo Facility helps but doesn't erase pockets of cash scarcity.
- Stopping balance-sheet runoff signals the Fed's concern about reserves and liquidity.
