The Master Investor Podcast with Wilfred Frost

Lloyd Blankfein, former Goldman Sachs CEO who steered the firm through 2008 and wrote Streetwise, discusses risk and resilience. He recalls J. Aron’s street-smart trading culture, why top traders act like poker players, the tensions between traders and bankers, leading through the 2008 crisis, and warning signs in private equity and private credit that could trigger a reckoning.

Tony Yoseloff, CIO of Davidson Kempner and specialist in opportunistic and distressed credit, discusses market parallels with the 1970s and early 2000s. He covers private credit’s boom and potential unwind, why software lending is vulnerable, event-driven arbitrage like the Warner battle, and why India’s credit market deserves attention. He closes with a rule about knowing in advance how you might lose money.

Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury Secretary and veteran global macro investor, discusses why the bond market must keep trading and how to imagine alternate market worlds. He explains the Treasury’s response to the Iran conflict, the 400-million-barrel reserve release, and contingency plans for tankers. He also covers tariffs, shadow banking risks, and how policy choices shape global alliances.

Ruchir Sharma, chair of Rockefeller International and founder/CIO of Breakout Capital, is a veteran emerging‑markets strategist and author. He argues US equity dominance may be peaking. He discusses how tech and AI powered recent gains, why international markets could outperform on earnings and payouts, the Fed, inflation hedges beyond gold, and under‑owned opportunities from Brazil to Southeast Asia.

Ruchir Sharma, founder and CIO of Breakout Capital and former Morgan Stanley strategist, gives market-savvy analysis. He discusses why markets have stayed calm so far, explains degrossing and recent market reshuffles, and outlines oil’s role as the main transmission channel and which regions gain or lose if oil spikes.

Greg Peters, Co-CIO of Fixed Income at PGIM overseeing $1.2T, gives a bond investing masterclass. He compares sovereigns and corporate credit, explains why US Treasuries remain unique, and warns about hyperscalers borrowing for AI. He outlines sovereign risk factors, prefers front-end duration, and urges humility with scenario-based models.

Aswath Damodaran, NYU Stern finance professor and valuation expert, explains why he is unusually cautious about equities and holding more cash. He questions AI hype and massive CapEx, warns of eroding trust in institutions, and defends buybacks and valuation-first investing. He also shares his favorite mega-cap picks and the value of idling to think.

Mason Morfit, Co-CEO and CIO of ValueAct Capital, a long-term activist investor who crafts collaborative turnarounds. He explains ValueAct’s quiet, constructive approach and recounts reshaping Microsoft and nudging Salesforce. He outlines the “digitize, organize, automate” thesis and why organizing data and rights, plus incumbents’ identity and compliance advantages, matter in the AI race.

Cameron Dawson, Chief Investment Officer at NewEdge Wealth and former market strategist, discusses whether the rotation from mega-cap growth is a lasting regime change or a short-term countertrend. She compares today’s concentration to past market bubbles. Topics include the wealth effect and K-shaped economy, liquidity cycles, risks for gold and Bitcoin, and portfolio positioning into 2026.

Sonali Basak, Chief Investment Strategist at iCapital and former Bloomberg Wall Street correspondent, explains how technology is lowering barriers to private markets while keeping institutional-style diligence. She covers bond and long-end yield risks, private credit vintage and manager selection, market breadth beyond the Magnificent 7, and why infrastructure software may win in the AI era.