FT Alphachat

Writer Leigh Gallagher joins Cardiff and Shannon to discuss the founders, the controversies and the future of the tech company that transformed the hospitality industry. It's the subject of Leigh's latest book, out on Tuesday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From fashion to music to drinking in pubs, the activities we do for delight and wonder have led to some of history's greatest innovations. Steven Johnson, author of Wonderland: How play made the modern world, joins Cardiff Garcia to discus how what we do for pleasure often has astonishing effects on the serious parts of our lives, much later on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Mauboussin, author of "The Success Equation" and head of global financial strategies at Credit Suisse, talks to Cardiff Garcia about his recent paper, "Thirty Years: The Ten Attributes of Great Investors". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nicholas Sargen, senior investment advisor and chief economist at Fort Washington Investment Advisors, joins the FT's John Authers to discuss his recent book, Global Shocks: An Investment Guide for Turbulent Markets, and to offer some insight on planning for the Trump era. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Long before the US presidential election, Twitter attracted vitriolic conversation and internet trolls. In this episode, writer Emily Parker joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the challenges of running an alternative social media platform for civil discussion, and why some people will always be drawn to the virality Twitter affords. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From drug pricing to corporate debt and the much-anticipated Snap IPO, hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia talk with fellow FT journalists about the stories they'll be watching this year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Izabella Kaminska and a panel of trading and markets experts analyse the film which launched thousands of trading careers and made frozen orange juice futures a household name, the 1983 classic Trading Places. Music credit: "The Marriage of Figaro", composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. Published by Musopen, 2012. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What do some people misunderstand about the white working class in the US and UK? Law professor and author Joan Williams explains. Then, Alphaville's Alex Scaggs and Matt Klein join host Cardiff Garcia to review the year in finance and economics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The investment consultant and author of "Winning the Loser's Game" joins the FT's John Authers to debate the merits of index investing, the subject of his latest book "The Index Revolution: Why Investors Should Join It Now". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Journalist and television anchor Joe Weisenthal joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the way social media has heralded a new era for language that resembles Homeric Greece more than the age of enlightenment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cardiff Garcia sits down with Nicholas Wapshott, author of Keynes Hayek: The Clash that Defined Modern Economics, to discuss which economist's ideas are ascendant in the post-crisis cycle, and why both will matter during the Trump administration. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cuban dissident and independent journalist Miriam Leiva speaks with Cardiff Garcia about the death of Fidel Castro, the reaction of Cubans, and her hopes for the economic and diplomatic relationship between Cuba and the US. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second edition of Alphachat's movie review, Izabella Kaminska leads a panel in discussing the economic and financial themes buried in Charlie Chaplin's most iconic films: The Gold Rush, City Lights and Modern Times, and the parallels between the economic landscape then and now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US Alphaville team breaks down the potential macroeconomic and financial-market effects of a Trump presidency, with special guest Aswath Damodaran, professor of finance at New York University. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cardiff Garcia visits co-host Shannon Bond on maternity leave to dig into the real and intangible costs of child rearing, with an assist from some recent data. Then, Catherine Rampell stops by the studio to explain the new economics of marriage. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Researchers Colin Camerer and Cary Frydman recently uncovered new facts about the psychological and neuroscientific processes that influence our financial decision making habits. They join host Cardiff Garcia to discuss further. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan Greenspan's reputation over five decades in public life has gone through wilder swings than the value of technology stocks or Las Vegas real estate during his tenure as Federal Reserve chairman. Author Sebastian Mallaby has produced the definitive account of Mr Greenspan's life, career, and the context in which he operated in a new book, The Man Who Knew. He joins FT Alphaville's Matt Klein to discuss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Buried deep in this week's US election news was a fresh analysis of the candidates' tax plans from the Tax Policy Center. Cardiff Garcia is joined by the FT's Mary Childs and Alex Scaggs to discuss the inverse impacts of the two economic proposals. The three also discuss what triggered the flash crash of the pound. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tim Harford tells Cardiff Garcia how disorder, messiness and confusion can have surprising benefits, often making us more creative and resilient. It is the subject of Tim's latest book titled Messy: The power of disorder to transform our lives. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The FT's Cardiff Garcia talks to writer Ryan Avent about the importance of social capital in an increasingly digitised and labour-abundant economy. The two also discuss recent shifts in global monetary policy. Ryan is a columnist at The Economist and author of the new book, "The Wealth of Humans". Visit FT.com/Alphachatfor show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Citi's chief global political analyst Tina Fordham joins Cardiff Garcia for a trip around the global economy to discuss the economic risks of either a Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton victory in November. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Forecasts about geopolitics and economics are often distorted by flawed institutional incentives and a range of cognitive biases. Dan Drezner, a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, tells Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs how forecasters typically go wrong, and he outlines what he calls the five "known unknowns" that will frame the political economy of the next generation. The three also discuss the foreign policy views of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sociologist Arlie Hochschild spent five years in the Louisiana bayou as part of her study of the American right. Hochschild tells host Cardiff Garcia how Donald Trump's nomination has appealed to the Louisiana residents who feel their story has increasingly been ignored. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Corporate villains are sometimes behind sudden increases in drug prices, but these unwanted surprises are often the result of a complicated and opaque healthcare system. The FT's David Crow joins Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs to discuss in this snack-sized episode of the weekly podcast. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The price of milk in Canada is disproportionately higher than it is in the US or even France, thanks to a government policy known as Supply Management implemented in the 1970s to protect dairy farmers from market instability. What does this policy mean in practice and how does it affect Canada's involvement in global trade? FT Alphaville's Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein discuss with guest George Pearkes, Canadian expat and macroeconomic strategist at Bespoke Investment Group. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alphaville's Izzy Kaminska leads a rousing panel analysing the economic and financial themes as well as the two visions of the tech industry portrayed in the Tron movies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 2015 MacArthur Genius Grant recipient and MIT professor joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss her work on the incentive systems that drive innovation in medical technology, including the effect of patents on the development of early stage cancer drug treatments. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska leads Gavyn Davies, chairman of Fulcrum Asset Management and an FT blogger, and Tyler Cowen, professor of economics at George Mason University, in a discussion on the forces causing productivity stagnation. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. This conversation was recorded at the FT Festival of Finance on July 1, 2016 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What are the economic and social tradeoffs of deciding where to live and how can one measure these? An economist at the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis joins Cardiff Garcia and Kara Scannell to discuss a system he developed for this exact purpose. Then, how did a failing business promoting mixed martial arts grow to become a global brand valued at $4bn? Cardiff talks the economics of the sport with John S. Nash, a writer for the UFC and MMA industry website Bloodyelbow.com. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Economists, analysts and bloggers in attendance at the FT's Festival of Finance weigh in on the global economic activity we might be missing because of Brexit-myopia. Then Cardiff Garcia quizzes Tyler Cowen, blogger and economist at George Mason University, in a game of "Overrated, Underrated", and guest co-host Kara Scannell discusses JP Morgan's lift in bank teller wages. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tim Harford joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss the potential economic effects of the UK leaving the EU. The referendum campaigns that preceded Brexit included a number of exaggerations and, in some cases, outright lies. But there are also nuanced and difficult questions that cannot be answered definitively, and deserve careful scrutiny. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

During normal economic cycles, increasing credit hides an economy's deeper problems, but when a financial crisis hits, all of that credit flips from shock absorber to shock multiplier. Professor of economics Alan Taylor explains his research. Then, FT journalists discuss some of the biggest shocks of 2016, including the change in perception at the Fed over what type of monetary policy would benefit the US economy. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Across the US, McDonald's restaurants serve an underappreciated role: as defacto community centres for people at the margins of society. It's a story chronicled by bond trader-turned-journalist Chris Arnade, who talks to the FT's Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs about why this happened. They also discuss how access to education shapes modern American society, and whether Wall Street employees have been punished enough for the role played by their industry in the 2008 financial crisis. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Finding a balance between work and your personal life matters not just to you and your family; it can also make companies and the economy in general more productive. Economist and author Heather Boushey joins Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs to discuss the many policy provisions, from paid family leave to flexible work schedules, that could improve this productivity, and Cardiff and Mary dive deeper into hedge fund culture. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Maria Konnikova, a writer and author of “The Confidence Game: Why We Fall For It… Every Time” talks to host Cardiff Garcia about her work and the challenge of judging the quality of social-science research. The two also discuss big data, open-plan offices, sleep and the psychological effects of pornography. Maria also describes the methods and traits of con artists, and explains why everyone is susceptible to being a victim. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many investors are questioning the benefit of allocating chunks of their money to hedge funds after recent bouts of financial market turbulence and poor performance. The FT's US financial correspondent Mary Childs joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the big players and their idiosyncratic personalities, contentious issues like fees and benchmarking metrics, and the institutional lack of diversity among top fund managers. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Guy Debelle, assistant governor at the Reserve Bank of Australia, discusses with Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein how decisions by the Federal Reserve have an effect on Australian monetary policy (and how they don't), Australia's experience with capital account liberalisation, fluctuations in the Chinese economy, and the foreign exchange code of conduct from the Bank of International Settlements. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The former chairman of the Federal Reserve talks to host Cardiff Garcia about the years prior to his inflation-fighting days of the 1980s, including his economics education, early career at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and US treasury, and his role in ending the Bretton Woods system of global finance. Visit FT.com/alphachat for a full transcript of the interview. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second half of the extended interview, former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker discusses his appointment as president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank of New York, his famous tenure as Fed chair in the 1980s, and some of his thoughts on the current financial system. Hosted by Cardiff Garcia. Visit FT.com/alphachat for a full transcript of the interview. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does it mean for a private equity firm to value its investments accurately? FT Alphaville's Matt Klein joins host Cardiff Garcia to address this surprisingly tricky question. Then, anthropologist Tassie Hirschfeld discusses the political economy of the criminal underworld, a topic rarely examined in conventional economics. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do many Americans have trouble saving money for emergencies? Economist Allison Schrager debates this question and the impact of oil prices on spending with hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond. Then, the FT's Kara Scannell explains why foreigners are sending their money to South Dakota to set up family trusts. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show links and notes. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Economist turned author Caroline Webb joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to talk about her new book How To Have a Good Day, in which she dissects 25 years worth of behavioural science research to explain everything from productivity to our most personal relationships. Caroline sticks around to discuss the dilemma of how to quantify the impact on the economy of status-seeking behaviour. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final episode of a four-part series on sovereign bankruptcy, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth tells the story of Jamaica's fiscal turnaround, which took a punitive austerity programme and a dose of good luck. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the third of a four-episode series, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth examines the novel but controversial way Greece restructured €200bn of its debts, which demonstrated potential improvements to the messy sovereign debt restructuring process. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second of a four episode series the FT's Robin Wigglesworth examines what happened when Argentina defaulted on $80bn of its bonds in 2001, at the time the biggest sovereign default in history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the first episode of a four part series on sovereign bankruptcy, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth looks at how and when countries fall into distress, and examines whether Italy's debts are sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Economist Brad DeLong examines three key but underappreciated events in economic history with host Cardiff Garcia. Then, author and former banker Satyajit Das discusses a variety of stagnationist trends that he says could yield an economic disaster worse than the Great Recession if something doesn't change, as outlined in his recent book The Age of Stagnation. Plus a conversation about starting a new career at middle age. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In an episode dedicated to investing and quantitative analysis, hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia are joined by US markets editor Robin Wigglesworth to discuss quirky new alternative data that money managers use to make investment decisions. Robin also offers some insight into what first quarter earnings indicate for corporate performance in 2016. Then, the FT's John Authers talks to Meb Faber of Cambria Investment Management about cloning the strategies of the world's most famous and aggressive active investors, the subject of Faber's recent book Invest with the House. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Psychologist Anders Ericsson, author of Peak: Secrets from the new science of expertise, joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to discuss his career's findings in the way people become experts in their fields. Then, the FT's Matt Garrahan discusses who could become the next leader of Disney, where the question of who would succeed Bob Iger as CEO has been thrown wide open by this week's exit of chief operating officer Tom Staggs. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wearable technology, including the Apple Watch and Google Glass, has been limited in appearance and functionality, but Amanda Parkes, chief technologist at Manufacture NY, thinks it has a promising future. She joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to discuss the relationship between technology and fashion and the privacy issues for the wearables of the future. Then, the FT's David Crow explains the latest developments in the Valeant and Theranos sagas. Plus a quick debate about executive pay and the public humiliation premium. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.