He was once a star trader with Julian Robertson's Tiger Capital, he then left and set up his own Asian hedge fund only to fall into trouble, charged with insider trading, come out of that scandal, build a personal fortune estimated at $20 billion, became known within Wall Street as the greatest investor you’ve never heard of.” and then loses it all, within a matter of days- who was Bill Hwang, where did it all go wrong for him , and even more importantly, at least for me how this story shines a light on what is a ticking timebomb that I believe is going to result in another serious financial meltdown-wits a cracking episode, enjoySubscribe now to access the longer co-hosted episodes released on the 1st of every month as well as lots of bonus episodes and ad free weekly episodes.Subscribe via Spotify Subscriptions, Apple Subscriptions or on Patreon by clicking on this link or going to patreon.com/greatbusinessstories
--------
29:21
--------
29:21
Marc Andreessen: Founder, Funder, Fanatic
When he was just 24 years old Andreesen launched Netscape, the browser and company that kicked off what became the dot com boom, became a multi millionaire and took on Bill Gates and Microsoft - and he lost.Then he started a new company, right as the bubble burst, and pivoted and persevered until he sold it and made another fortune. And then he started a16z, one of the most powerful venture capital firms in the world. And along the way he has had numerous controversies while also setting himself up as this very powerful kind of evangelical, but if you ask me, fanatical, techno optimist.This is the story of Marc Andreessen. And it's a cracking episode—enjoy.Subscribe now to access the longer co-hosted episodes released on the 1st of every month as well as lots of bonus episodes and ad free weekly episodes.Subscribe via Spotify Subscriptions, Apple Subscriptions or on Patreon by clicking on this link or going to patreon.com/greatbusinessstories
--------
31:03
--------
31:03
Webvan: My Favourite Business Failure
To clarify the title- I don’t love the Webvan story because it failed- I don’t like to see any company fail, but because the story behind Webvan is the story of the internet boom, those 5 years from 1995-2000 when me and my friends were young, eager, hungry and the internet opened up so many opportunities for us. And the Webvan story, it’s ambition, it’s scale, it’s stated purpose to replace grocery shopping- yes pretty mundane but also hugely impactful, and it’s demise was so fast a, it makes for a fascinating story set in a time that I have nothing but very fond memories of- enjoy, it’s a cracker.Subscribe now to access the longer co-hosted episodes released on the 1st of every month as well as lots of bonus episodes and ad free weekly episodes.Subscribe via Spotify Subscriptions, Apple Subscriptions or on Patreon by clicking on this link or going to patreon.com/greatbusinessstories
--------
30:29
--------
30:29
The Jensen Huang Story: From Toilet Scrubber to Tech Titan
At age nine, Jensen Huang couldn’t speak English and was scrubbing toilets in a Kentucky reform school. By 35, he’d taken Nvidia public. And by 60, he’d built the most valuable company on Earth.How?By betting everything—twice—on markets that didn’t even exist yet. First gaming. Then AI.He convinced Sega to pay him not to deliver a chip. He built a million-selling chip in eight months, when the industry standard was two years. Now, with Nvidia powering the AI revolution, the world runs on chips bearing his vision.This is the story of Jensen Huang. And it’s a cracking episode—enjoy.Subscribe now to access the longer co-hosted episodes released on the 1st of every month as well as lots of bonus episodes and ad free weekly episodes.Subscribe via Spotify Subscriptions, Apple Subscriptions or on Patreon by clicking on this link or going to patreon.com/greatbusinessstories
--------
32:52
--------
32:52
Victor Posner: Junk Bonds, Pension Raids, and Pure Greed
Have you even heard of Victor Posner? I hadn’t but if you’re a fan of this show, you’ll know that one of mine and Keith’s favorite books of all time is Barbarians at the Gate, a rip roaring story about a leveraged buy-out and attempted hostile take over of RJR Nabisko from the 1980’s. So I love the drama around hostile takeovers, and I wanted to find out- who first started hostile takeovers in the 20th century, and it turned out to be this guy Victor Posner, I can say that I’d never come across such a lowlife. If you're ever looking for a person that symbolises everything that’s wrong with capitalism- and just to note- I’m a fan of capitalism overall- then Posner is your poster boy.Subscribe now to access the longer co-hosted episodes released on the 1st of every month as well as lots of bonus episodes and ad free weekly episodes.Subscribe via Spotify Subscriptions, Apple Subscriptions or on Patreon by clicking on this link or going to patreon.com/greatbusinessstories
Ireland