Ed Barker’s Post

💭 What would you choose: $1M in investment or a board advisor? For me, the answer is clear: board advisors, like Roei Samuel. Just two weeks ago, over dinner, Roei Samuel and I discussed our ambitious targets for the holiday season. He shared a few game-changing suggestions — and now, even before December begins, we’ve already hit 64% of our Christmas goal. Roei Samuel, Janos Csak, CFA, FRM, and Valentina Kristensen — our incredible board advisors at ETA Technologies — are the driving force behind our #success. Their investment comes in the form of strategic advice, deep expertise, and a network that opens doors we couldn’t have imagined. Thanks to their guidance, we’re not just meeting goals — we’re confidently setting more ambitious ones and navigating challenges with clarity and #focus. I wouldn’t trade their wisdom for anything. 🚀 So, I’ll ask you again: $1M or the right advisor?

A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending the Academy for Institutional Investors, LLC conference in Cary, NC. A big thank you to Carolina Estefania Siles for recommending I attend—this was one of my favorite conferences of the year. Thank you to Andrea Szigethy and her team for an incredible event. As an equity investor focused on Emerging Markets, I don’t often get the chance to explore other asset classes. At this event, I had the opportunity to dive into topics like space investing, micro-expressions, CLOs, private credit, and much more. I highly recommend attending future events hosted by AII—they genuinely put together top-notch programming! See takeaways below. Pippa Malmgren - The lines between synthetic and non-synthetic systems are blurring. - We are in a war zone with algorithms. Widen your view - Conflicts are increasingly centered around undersea cables and satellites - There are space-based solutions to Earth-bound issues. - Superpowers are competing for space dominance in space. Annie Sarnblad - Micro-Expressions - Humans, including the blind, express basic emotions like joy, disgust, and arousal through universal facial expressions, such as cheek movement, wrinkle of nose, or pupil dilation, respectively.   Institutional Investors: - AI is being used to transcribe and record notes, enhancing productivity. - Concerns exist about over-reliance on heuristics and shortcuts. - Growing interest in finding innovative ways to unlock liquidity in private equity (e.g., secondaries). - Generalists are preferred over specialists. - Success needs to be framed in terms of time and uncertainty, especially when projecting investment outcomes.   Private Credit: - High-return (13-15%), even in Western Europe. - Regional banks shrinking = private credit is stepping into the space. - Asset-based finance is the new hot security. - Investors are advised to dig into the weeds on restructuring, track record, cycles, and teams when evaluating opportunities. CLO: - A record year, with healthy issuance and strong equity returns (15-19% IRR). - Key risks: loss in the first loss tranche, sensitivity to NAV, and managing down cycles. - Managers typically charge 40-50 bps, with startups working for less   US: - Post Election - Keep an eye on the Yuan/Rupee, NAFTA renegotiations in 2026, and the 2025 US budget. - The private market has become disconnected, with recent rounds valued too high, especially for software companies. - U.S. markets, especially tech, may have over-earnings. - Investors are moving towards sectors like life sciences, healthcare, and cybersecurity. International Investing: - Shorting China did not yield results - Emerging and frontier markets pose high macro risks. - Indian public markets are expensive, but companies prepping for IPOs offer better value. - Bloated incumbent banks in Brazil are being disrupted - Japan is exiting deflation. Companies are increasing CAPEX domestically, signaling investment opportunities.

Here’s the post you've requested: --- 🛑 Investment gurus are wasting your time. 💣 Let’s be honest: The 'meme stock' frenzy isn’t just disrupting the financial world—it’s exposing how broken the system really is. The latest article from The Conversation reveals that meme stock investors are merely trying to keep up with a financial system that has effectively abandoned them. 📉 The established financial structures and the so-called 'experts' have failed to evolve, leaving average investors in the dust. But let's cut the crap: ⚠️ Who decided mainstream finance was only for the elite? ⚖️ Why are traditional financial advisors making obscene amounts while you struggle to make a decent ROI? [Insert Link to Article: https://lnkd.in/d-tVkTD3] The meme stock movement is democratizing investment opportunities. It’s a middle finger to the archaic investment models that have ruled for decades. 🚀 If you’re not questioning the status quo, what are you even doing? ✋ Tired of losing your hard-earned money to outdated financial advice? It’s time to adapt your strategies and harness the power of tech solutions like Finotor for precise accounting and financial analysis. Don’t just follow the trends—understand them. Here’s your action plan: 1️⃣ Recognize that traditional financial advice is often self-serving. 2️⃣ Educate yourself on new investment avenues. 3️⃣ Use intelligent tools like Finotor to make informed decisions. It’s time to take control back from the financial gatekeepers. 💪 Franck BRUNET ---------------------- Liked this post? Want to see more? Ring it on my profil 🔔 Connect with me 🔝 Follow me: #franckbrunet #finotor

Are you curious about the world of angel investment and how it can make a lasting impact on your community? Did you know that you can start investing with just £500? Ethical Equity, the UK’s pioneering impact investment platform, is hosting another Aspiring Angels meet-up in Bristol supported by Evelyn Partners… and you’re invited! Date & Time: Wednesday, September 18th  · 3 - 5pm GMT+1 Location: 21 Portwall Lane 4th floor Redcliffe, Bristol BS1 6NA. During this session you will gain practical and experiential insights into the world of early stage investments by: Understanding the basics of interpreting financial accounts. It's crucial for #investors to understand financial accounts, as they offer valuable insights into a company's financial health and aid in making informed investment decisions. So, this session is designed to share the basics of interpreting accounts. You will hear from Helen Bassett, Regional Managing Partner at Evelyn Partners, who will shed light on the following: * Where to find accounts? * Demystifying accounting terminology? * What are basic primary accounting statements? * Things to look out for in the numbers? * Questions to ask about the accounts? Investing can be daunting, but our event is here to help. We welcome you to bring a friend with you too. Join us in this inspiring journey towards a brighter, more sustainable future through impact investment. Together, we can make a difference. Reserve your spot now: https://lnkd.in/eBgUTjeV Daniella Genas MA. MBA, Tara Attfield-Tomes, Denis Lindsay, Anna Woźniak, Dr. Rachel Dugdale, Julia Streets, Stella Cox CBE, FCSI(Hon), James Myatt, Rob Hingston, Daniel Read, Nina Searle, Helen Bassett, Kim Lee, Mustafa Rampuri, Martino Burgess, nicholas faucher, Nigel Hall, Roy Zimmerhansl, Dash Virdee, Jason Sahota, Jof Walters, Simon Jenner, Caroline Hughes, Ali Kazmi David Mellor #impactinvesting #impactinvestment #angelinvesting #angelinvestor #Bristol

Congratulations to my colleague (and boss!) Michael Eisenberg for authoring WEF's latest paper, 'Bridging the Divide: Private Markets and New Drivers of Value Creation'. The paper highlights how private markets are uniquely positioned to accelerate the energy transition and create value through ESG. There is plenty of great insights and case studies in the paper, but here are a couple of highlights: -  By aligning business models with climate transition and decarbonization goals, GPs help portfolio companies achieve rapid growth, maximizing returns and accelerate the energy transition. - Current decarbonization efforts primarily focus on cost savings, overlooking opportunities for growth, brand enhancement, and premium pricing through sustainable offerings. - Quantifying and effectively communicating sustainability benefits can enhance internal understanding and market positioning. - Sustainability initiatives present cross-sell and up-sell opportunities, strengthening equity stories for exits or refinancing. - Through private market governance models, portfolio and investment teams, and collaboration with sustainability experts, companies can foster the growth of current and future leaders in the energy transition. The paper is available here: https://lnkd.in/efSk8fJM

INVESTMENT MASTERCLASS! A recent newsletter by Ildar Davletshin, of Hidden Value Gems, highlights the tremendous investment track record of Francois Rochon, the founder of Giverny Capital. “If you invested $100,000 in Francois Rochon's portfolio in July 1993, your investment would be worth $7,556,199 by the end of 2023. This impressive 75.6x growth translates into just 15.1% growth per year. A great example of the power of compounding and investing over the long term.” One of many great insights highlighted in the newsletter, that Francois provided at a recent conference, resonated completely. “Investing lies at the intersection of the four different areas: Science, Finance, History and Art. SCIENCE is understanding the business and its product, collecting facts. FINANCE is understanding the financial performance of the business (how much it earns and how much capital it consumes). HISTORY (if I understood correctly) is understanding the evolution of the business and how similar businesses performed in the past. Finally, ART is dealing with imprecise information and trusting your intuition about business qualities and management.” "The last point is very important. To borrow from Francois, “Investing is about being imprecise and accepting to be wrong as often as 30-40% of the time”. Unlike in science, humans “do not behave like atoms”." #hiddenvaluegems #ildardavletshin #francoisrochon #investing #science #art #history #finance #investors #newsletter #equities #stockmarket

Summer Investment Trends: Unlocking Opportunities 🌞 Summer is typically a quieter time for investors, with many taking a break and enjoying the season. However, according to our Investor relations manager Karolina Žuravliova, this can actually be a prime opportunity to enhance your returns. She believes that summer period can be a great opportunity to review investment strategy, evaluate new investment opportunities, and decide on future steps. Find more about investment opportunities and challenges during the summer season in an article by Verslo žinios. The link is in a comment below. #SummerInvesting #InvestmentOpportunities #InvestorTips #InvestmentStrategy #FinancialPlanning #InvestmentChallenges #InvestSmart #InvestmentReturns

Morning thoughts about small caps and this upcoming investing cycle. Enjoy!

VC winter seems to be over, and Kauffman Fellows are deploying!  The latest report from our network reveals a vibrant outlook for the rest of '24. Investments are on the rise, with a significant shift in sentiment: 50% of managers plan to ink more deals in 2024. While expectations soar for founders with a surge in deal-making, fundraising trends spell a hopeful path for GPs.   Download the Full Report: https://bit.ly/3U6SbLa