On Private Equity Deals this week, our 7th and penultimate episode of season 2 features the purchase of longstanding independent tire dealer Mavis Tire Express Services by recently launched private equity firm BayPine. Mavis is a great business with steady cash flow, economic resilience, and a great management team that was a widely sought after asset in an auction process. You might imagine that it commanded a full price and the attention of some of the biggest players in private equity. So how did upstart BayPine win the deal and what does it plan to do to make the deal work?  Tune in to Private Equity Deals to find out. Subscribe on Apple Podcast Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe on YouTube

Today’s episode is a true hedge fund master class. We convened a panel of three longstanding investors in the space - Craig Bergstrom, CIO and a Managing Partner of Corbin Capital Partners, Adam Blitz, CEO and CIO of Evanston Capital Management and a past guest on the show, and Dan Fagan, portfolio manager at GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund. All three have been in the space the better part of two decades and have both a wealth of experience and nuanced understanding to share. Our conversation covers their respective investment approaches, impact of the higher rate environment, managing liquidity, and the potential for contagion. From there, we canvass perspectives on platform hedge funds, long-short equity, credit, and macro strategies. We close discussing fees, the most interesting opportunities, and places to avoid going forward. Show Notes 04:36    Firm and investment approach overview 11:07    Impact of higher rate environment 14:41    Asset allocation vs. manager selection 17:32    Market liquidity and contagion risk 23:54    LP liquidity 31:35    Platform hedge funds 43:52    Long-short equity 50:44    Credit opportunities 52:54    Macro strategies 57:56    Fees 1:04:29 Best ideas 1:08:22 Risks   Learn More Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership

Adam Blitz is the CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Evanston Capital Management, a $4.5 billion hedge fund of funds manager with a decade and a half of experience managing hedge fund portfolios. Adam joined Evanston at its inception in 2002 and leads investment research and portfolio management. Previously, he worked in the Prime Brokerage area and Asset Management Division of Goldman Sachs and served as head trader at AQR.  Adam earned a B.S. in Economics at the Wharton School. Our conversation dives in the hedge fund category of investing, covering how a leading allocator in the space thinks about strategic asset allocation, portfolio construction, risk management, manager research, decision making, and monitoring managers. Adam’s perspective on the evolution in how allocators perceive hedge funds and the resulting unattractiveness of the “average hedge fund” today resonate strongly with how I’ve viewed this widely discussed and recently scrutinized corner of the markets.   Learn More Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership

I share a bunch of questions on my mind for which my best answer is “I Don’t Know.”  These include issues around sovereign debt, asset allocation, an economic slowdown, the stock market, private credit, and life itself.

Today’s sponsored insight is another empty room, an opportunity ignored by most investors because they either don’t want to or can’t participate. This time around, we’ll discuss investing where capital is truly scarce - the frontier of the frontier markets. Kiyan Zandiyeh is the CIO of Sturgeon Capital, a +$300 million private investment firm that backs bold founders building the leading technology companies in countries early into their digital transition, including Bangladesh, Central Asia, Egypt, and Pakistan. Our conversation covers Kiyan’s early entrepreneurial and investing experience, venture and operating experience building two businesses in Iran through 80% currency devaluations, and Sturgeon’s venture strategy from there. We discuss Sturgeon’s investment process across country selection, targets, founders, valuation, risks, and investment examples. We close touching on Kiyan’s ambition in the coming years. Show Notes 02:04    Kiyan’s Background 10:58    Joining Sturgeon 12:40    Operating businesses through 80% currency devaluations 15:19    Investment strategy 18:21    Investment team 19:45    Target companies 24:27    Sourcing deals 25:38    Valuation 26:17    Risks 31:55    Competition 32:49    Investment examples 44:07    Ambitions going forward Learn More Follow Ted on Twitter at @tseides or LinkedIn Subscribe to the mailing list Access Transcript with Premium Membership