Podcast
Fund Shack Private Equity Podcast
Hosted by Fund Shack · EN
Private equity, venture capital and alternative investments - long-form podcasts with industry leaders
Dive into in-depth conversations with industry leaders and gain exclusive insights into the world of private capital.
🎙️Fund Shack is dedicated to providing thought-provoking, authentic discussions with the most respected private capital managers, asset managers, professional advisers, & thought leaders. Our long-form interviews are unscripted, ensuring genuine & enriching conversations. Hosted by Ross Butler, 25 years in the private capital industry.
14episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Private Equity Is a Talent Business - Flor Kassai, Inflexion
3w ago00:29:52Tap to summarizeFlor Kassai, Managing Partner and Head of Buyout at Inflexion, joins Ross Butler to discuss European mid-market private equity, talent, origination and repeatable value creation.Flor argues that private equity is more of a talent business than an investment business. In her view, getting the right management team into a company is the central variable in whether a deal can scale, adapt and create value.This episode explores how Inflexion thinks about dealmaking in 2026, including the importance of pricing power, margin quality, sub-sector expertise and repeatable playbooks. Flor explains how Inflexion has built depth in areas such as testing, inspection, certification and compliance, veterinary roll-ups, fund administration, corporate services, skincare, wealth management and even darts.The discussion also covers direct origination in the European mid-market. Flor explains why trust is built over years, not meetings, and why local presence still matters in a world increasingly shaped by AI and data-led sourcing. The conversation includes Inflexion’s relationship with Easyfairs founder Eric Everard, its expansion beyond the UK into Benelux, the Nordics and DACH, and its use of continuation funds to extend ownership of high-quality assets.Also discussed:Why 2026 is a tricky but attractive environment for disciplined private equity investorsHow Inflexion repeats sub-sector playbooks across strategies and geographiesWhy management teams and talent are central to private equity value creationHow direct origination works in founder-led and relationship-driven marketsWhen buy-and-build works, and when organic growth is the better answerWhy continuation funds can be a good structure when the next phase of value creation is clearWhat Nodor reveals about finding value in unexpected mid-market nichesFlor’s career journey from Argentina to JP Morgan, Wharton, Bain, Hg and InflexionWatch the full episode and explore more private markets insights at Fund Shack.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹About our guest Flor Kassai is Managing Partner and Head of Buyout at Inflexion. She leads Inflexion’s buyout strategy and has been closely involved in the firm’s growth across the UK and Northern Europe.🔗https://www.linkedin.com/in/florencia-kassai-a711b2/🌐 https://www.inflexion.com/people/flor-kassai/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹About our host Ross Butler 🔗 CONNECT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🌐 www.fund-shack.com📘 Order Ross Butler’s book: Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian#investlikeabarbarian🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 🏢 Private Markets Capability – 5-Minute AssessmentPrivate markets are moving into the adviser channel faster than most firms are building real capability. This short diagnostic looks at how consistently your team can explain, challenge and navigate private markets in client conversations.In less than 5 minutes, you’ll see: Where your capability is strong Where it varies across individuals Where your firm may be exposed as the market evolvesNo preparation required. Instant score and clear next step.👉 Take the assessment: https://private-markets-capability-assessment.scoreapp.com/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
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Where Private Markets Meet Reality | Secondaries Explained | Nigel Dawn | Fund Shack Ep. 85
4w ago00:43:49Tap to summarizePrivate markets look stable… until they don’t.NAVs move slowly. Returns look smooth. Volatility appears contained.But none of that is tested until an investor actually tries to sell.That’s where secondaries come in.The secondaries market is where private markets lose their narrative and face reality.It’s where valuation becomes negotiation.Where liquidity becomes optional.And where the difference between price and value stops being theoretical.In this conversation, Nigel Dawn, Global Head of Private Capital Advisory at Evercore, breaks down how secondaries have quietly become one of the most important forces shaping private markets today.If you want to understand private markets properly, this is where you start.What is the secondaries market in private equity?The secondaries market allows investors to buy and sell existing private market assets, including fund interests and company stakes, providing liquidity in an otherwise illiquid asset class.Why does the secondaries market matter?It is the point where private market valuations (NAVs) are tested against real transaction prices, making it critical for price discovery, portfolio management and liquidity.What are continuation vehicles?Continuation vehicles are structures that allow private equity managers to hold high-quality assets for longer while offering liquidity to existing investors and bringing in new capital.How large is the secondaries market?Despite rapid growth, it remains small at roughly 2% of total private markets NAV, suggesting significant room for expansion.What is the outlook for secondaries?Growth is expected to accelerate, particularly in private credit secondaries, driven by demand for liquidity, portfolio management and new investor access.What’s covered Why secondaries are the true pricing mechanism in private markets The shift from stigma to strategic portfolio managementHow continuation vehicles actually work (and why they’re misunderstood)The difference between NAV and executable priceHow conflicts are managed in GP-led transactionsThe rise of private wealth capital in secondariesWhy private credit secondaries are the next major growth areaChapters 00:00 Secondaries: where private markets meet reality01:26 What the media gets wrong about private markets03:00 From stigma to strategy, evolution of secondaries06:13 Why the market is still only ~2% of NAV07:45 Continuation vehicles explained10:30 Not “kicking the can” what’s really happening15:53 Conflicts, ILPA and investor protection19:28 How pricing works (NAV vs price)22:03 Retail capital and evergreen structures30:37 Liquidity solutions (NAV lending, strip sales, etc.)32:14 Private credit secondaries, next wave38:04 Has private markets lost its partnership model?Secondaries are no longer a niche.They are becoming the operating system of private markets liquidity, enabling:Active portfolio managementReal price discoveryCapital recycling at scale🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Nigel Dawn is Global Head of Private Capital Advisory at Evercore.He advises institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds and private equity firms on secondaries transactions globally.🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/nigel-dawn-9aa121/ 🌐https://www.evercore.com/who-we-are/overview/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Ross ButlerPrivate Markets Capability – 5-Minute AssessmentPrivate markets are moving into the adviser channel faster than most firms are building real capability.This short diagnostic looks at how consistently your team can explain, challenge and navigate private markets in client conversations.In less than 5 minutes, you’ll see: Where your capability is strong Where it varies across individuals Where your firm may be exposed as the market evolvesNo preparation required. Instant score and clear next step.👉 Take the assessment: https://private-markets-capability-assessment.scoreapp.com/🔗 CONNECT with Ross on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/
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Permira Credit – What's really happening in Private Credit | David Hirschmann | Fund Shack Ep. 84
Apr 1400:34:39Tap to summarizePrivate credit has grown into a $1.6–1.7 trillion market, but much of the current narrative is dominated by concerns around defaults, AI disruption and liquidity.In this episode, David Hirschmann, Co-Head of Permira Credit, explains why private credit is a structural evolution of the financial system, not a cyclical boom, and why much of the perceived risk reflects a misunderstanding of how credit actually works.What we cover🔹The post-GFC origins of private credit🔹How direct lending competes with syndicated loans🔹Why borrowers pay a premium for certainty and flexibility🔹 The role of equity cushions in protecting lenders🔹 What really happens in a default scenario🔹Why extreme default forecasts may be overstated🔹The difference between equity risk and credit risk🔹How AI impacts credit underwriting🔹Why information advantage matters in private credit🔹How LPs assess and differentiate managersPrivate credit is often judged through an equity lens, focusing on valuation risk and market sentiment.In reality, credit investing is driven by cash flow durability, capital structure and recovery dynamics, which can produce strong outcomes even when equity returns disappoint.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹David HirschmannCo-Head of Permira Credit & Head of Private Credit🔗CONNECT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-hirschmann-4072a2/🌐 https://www.permira.com/investing/credit🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Ross ButlerFounder and Host Fund Shack 🔗 CONNECT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🌐 www.fund-shack.com🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹📘 Order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian#investlikeabarbarian 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 Chapters00:00 – Private credit: structural shift or temporary boom? Why the asset class has grown so rapidly and why the current narrative may be misleading02:20 – The post-GFC origin story. How bank retrenchment created the opportunity for private lenders04:30 – Banks vs private credit: competition or coexistence? Where banks still dominate and where private lenders have the edge07:00 – Private debt vs syndicated loans. Cost vs certainty, and why borrowers increasingly choose private markets10:30 – Is private credit too borrower-friendly? Relationship lending, sponsor alignment and the role of equity cushions12:00 – What happens when deals go wrong? Restructuring, debt-to-equity conversion and recovery dynamics14:30 – Default rates: are markets overreacting? Why extreme forecasts may reflect macro fear rather than fundamentals16:00 – AI risk: equity vs credit perspective. Why technological disruption impacts valuation more than repayment20:00 – What investors get wrong about credit risk. Why leverage and covenants alone don’t tell the full story23:00 – Case study: restructuring and recovery. How a challenged investment still delivered a positive outcome25:00 – Can LPs really differentiate between managers? Market concentration and what actually matters in manager selection27:00 – Why experience is critical in private credit. Downside management, restructuring and long-cycle investing🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 About Fund Shack Private Markets Podcast, Fund Shack www.fund-shack.comExplores private equity, private credit, infrastructure, secondaries and private wealth access through long-form, technical conversations with leading practitioners and thinkers.💡 Suggest a guest: katie@linearB.media 📩 Join our community Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/📘 Explore episode summaries, transcripts and related content at www.fund-shack.com🔔 Subscribe for more deep-dive private markets conversations
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How machines will transform private capital markets | Ep. 83
Feb 400:44:06Tap to summarizeCan algorithms already outperform human decision-making in private equity?In this episode of Private Markets Podcast, Fund Shack www.fund-shack.com, Ross Butler speaks with Oliver Gottschalg, Professor at HEC Paris and founder of Gottschalg Analytics, about how machine learning is already reshaping private equity fund selection and secondaries pricing.Drawing on more than 25 years of empirical research and extensive real-world back-testing, Gottschalg explains why algorithmic decision support can improve outcomes using the same opportunity sets LPs invest in today. The discussion explores why private markets may be structurally better suited to machine learning than public markets, where human judgement still matters, and how lower-cost, more scalable private equity products could emerge.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Topics covered include:How machine learning can outperform “normal” private equity allocation decisionsWhat conservative back-testing on real LP portfolios revealsWhy private equity secondaries pricing remains inefficientThe limits of explainability and the rise of predictive decision-makingHow humans should interact with algorithms as downside governors, not alpha generatorsWhat this means for LPs, GPs and the future cost of liquidity in private markets🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Guest: Oliver Gottschalg, Professor of Strategy and Business Policy at HEC Paris, Director of the HEC Private Equity Certificate, and Founder of Gottschalg Analytics.🌐 Gottschalg Analytics: https://www.gottschalg.com/🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/oliver-gottschalg-b53b6261/Host: Ross Butler, Founder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.com🔗 CONNECT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/📘 Order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian#investlikeabarbarian 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹About Fund ShackPrivate Markets Podcast, Fund Shack www.fund-shack.comExplores private equity, private credit, infrastructure, secondaries and private wealth access through long-form, technical conversations with leading practitioners and thinkers.💡 Suggest a guest: katie@linearB.media 📩 Join our community Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/🎧 Listen on podcast platforms or watch the full episode on YouTube📘 Explore episode summaries, transcripts and related content at www.fund-shack.com🔔 Subscribe for more deep-dive private markets conversations
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Evergreen Funds, Private Credit and the Information Problem | Cyril Demaria-Bengochea
Jan 700:52:29Tap to summarizeIn this episode of the Private Markets Podcast, Fund Shack, Ross Butler is joined by Cyril Demaria-Bengochea, Head of Private Market Strategy at Julius Baer and Associate Professor at EDHEC Business School.Cyril brings a rare combination of academic rigour and practical industry insight, shaped by his work with institutional investors, private banks, regulators, and industry bodies including Invest Europe and ILPA. Together, Ross and Cyril unpack what is really changing in private markets, why innovation is accelerating despite slower fundraising and exits, and why information quality, not liquidity or leverage, is now the industry’s biggest constraint.The discussion explores how continuation funds have moved rapidly into the mainstream, why evergreen structures have become central to private-wealth portfolios, and where the real risks sit beneath commonly used labels like “semi-liquid”. Cyril also offers a measured, data-driven view on private credit, arguing that its growth reflects capital filling the void left by regional banks rather than an unchecked expansion of systemic risk.The episode goes on to examine listed versus unlisted private equity, the limits of trading private shares without public-market disclosure, and how private markets increasingly compete with fixed income rather than public equities in long-term portfolio construction.This is a technical, practitioner-focused conversation for allocators, advisers, wealth managers, and professionals navigating private markets at scale.Topics covered include: Evergreen private equity funds, continuation vehicles and GP-led secondaries, private credit and direct lending, portfolio construction for private wealth, listed private equity vs unlisted structures, liquidity and redemption risk, transparency and due diligence, AI and venture capital cycles, and the role of information in market discipline.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹💼 Cyril Demaria-Bengochea Head of Private Market Strategy at Julius BaerAssociate Professor at EDHEC Business SchoolAuthor and advisor to Invest Europe, ILPA, and the European Commission🌐 https://www.juliusbaer.com/international/en/our-solutions/investing/other-solutions-and-products/private-markets-offering/🔗 CONNECT on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyril-demaria/Ross ButlerFounder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.com🔗 CONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹📘 Order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian🎬Meet the Author webinars https://l.ead.me/BarbarianWebinar#investlikeabarbarian 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Fund Shack is a podcast exploring private equity, venture capital, private credit, infrastructure and real assets, through in-depth conversations with the investors, founders and thought leaders shaping the future of private markets.🔗 More episodes: www.fund-shack.com💡 Suggest a guest: katie@linearB.media 📩 Subscribe to our Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
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Private Equity Myths vs Reality: Jobs, Housing and 401(k)s | Will Dunham American Investment Council
Dec 1100:34:49Tap to summarizeWill Dunham, President and CEO of the American Investment Council, joins Fund Shack to unpack one of the most misunderstood debates in modern finance: the real economic impact of private equity and private credit in the United States.We explore how private capital supports 13 million American jobs, why online narratives around housing and healthcare often diverge from the data, and how private equity is funding manufacturing reshoring, AI infrastructure and national security. We also examine the policy shift opening 401(k) retirement plans to alternative investments, the controversy around private credit and systemic risk, and the broader question of whether private capital remains aligned with everyday Americans.Topics include: 🔹private equity in US housing🔹build-to-rent supply🔹rent-to-own models 🔹healthcare access and innovation🔹 the growth of private credit🔹Federal Reserve research on systemic risk🔹the shrinking US public markets🔹pension fund returns🔹the diversification challenge for retirement savers🔹the SEC private fund adviser rule🔹the political dynamics shaping private capital's licence to operate.For investors, advisers, policymakers and allocators seeking a clear view of how private markets actually function on Main Street, this episode offers grounded analysis rather than headlines.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Thank you to our episode partner, Brookfield’s Private Equity Group: A Global leader in acquiring and driving operational transformation in industrials and essential business services.For more information, visit: www.brookfield.com/it-takes-industry🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹💼 Learn more at: Will Dunham President and Chief Executive Officer🌐 www.investmentcouncil.orgCONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/dunhamwill/ Ross ButlerFounder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.comCONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹📘 Pre-order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian#investlikeabarbarian 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Fund Shack is the private equity podcast with in-depth conversations with investors, founders, and thought leaders shaping the future of private markets.🔗 More episodes www.fund-shack.com 📩 Subscribe to our Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/Suggest a guest: katie@linearB.media🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
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Brookfield: The private markets giant that flies below the radar
Nov 1900:38:35Tap to summarizeRoss Butler speaks with David Nowak, President of Brookfield’s Private Equity Group. David leads Brookfield’s North American private equity business and its evergreen strategy. He brings a contrarian, operations-led viewpoint shaped by more than a decade working across one of the world’s most integrated alternative-investment platforms.We explore how Brookfield focuses on essential-service businesses that are misunderstood, how it leverages information advantages drawn from its global infrastructure, real estate, renewables and energy-transition platforms, and why its dual-sponsorship model between investors and operators produces repeatable value creation across market cycles.Brookfield’s approach is not thematic. Instead, it targets situations where perceived risk diverges from actual risk. David discusses the Westinghouse acquisition as an example: nuclear power was deeply out of favour, yet Brookfield’s renewables team demonstrated it remained indispensable to regional power grids. Operational work then doubled EBITDA. A similar framework guided the acquisition of Clarios, where market consensus around electric vehicles failed to reflect realistic adoption rates and operational improvement opportunities.A large part of Brookfield’s private equity model centres on operations. Around 35 senior operators sit directly inside the investment floor, and every deal is jointly owned by an investor and an operator from diligence through exit. Over half of Brookfield’s private equity returns have come from operational improvement, not leverage. Investment professionals also spend a year inside a portfolio company before promotion, building practical judgement that informs decision-making back at headquarters.David also unpacks Brookfield’s exit discipline, the benefits of long-dated and permanent capital, and why resilient, essential-service companies tend to attract strategic buyers regardless of market cycles. Finally, he discusses culture, humility and career progression, offering grounded advice for young professionals entering private markets.Key themesContrarian investing and misunderstood essential-service businessesInformation advantage across Brookfield’s multi-platform global footprintThe pilot / co-pilot model between investors and operatorsOperational value creation and secondments into portfolio companiesEBITDA improvement through pricing, supply-chain and organisational workEvergreen capital, strategic exits and long-hold flexibilityCulture, apprenticeship and career development in private equity🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹💼 Learn more at: 🌐 www.brookfield.com/it-takes-industryDavid Nowak: https://www.brookfield.com/about-us/leadership/david-nowakBrookfield’s Private Equity Group: A Global leader in acquiring and driving operational transformation in industrials and essential business services. Ross Butler: Founder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.comCONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 📘 Pre-order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian#investlikeabarbarian 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Fund Shack is the private capital podcast with in-depth conversations with investors, founders, and thought leaders shaping the future of private markets. Its were Private Markets meets private Wealth. 📩 Subscribe to our Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹00:00 Why Brookfield avoids thematic investing01:00 Evolution of Brookfield’s PE strategy03:00 Essential-services focus; 06:00 Dual-sponsorship model09:00 Integrated open-floor culture12:00 Westinghouse case15:00 Operational EBITDA gains18:00 Investor secondments20:00 Clarios and EV cycles24:00 PE in higher rates28:00 Strategic exits31:00 Alignment and pricing discipline33:00 Culture and apprenticeship35:00 Career guidance38:00 Closing reflections
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Creative destruction and the making of the modern world, with Jack Weatherford
Oct 3101:08:15Tap to summarizeAnthropologist and best-selling author Jack Weatherford, whose Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World redefined how we view empire and innovation, joins Ross Butler to explore how the Mongol world prefigured today’s private equity model.When the Mongols swept across Eurasia in the thirteenth century, they destroyed old orders, but they also built new ones. In this conversation, Jack Weatherford explains how Genghis Khan combined conquest with institution-building, creating a meritocratic system that elevated productivity and aligned incentives in a way that modern investors would recognise.We discuss how Mongol queens managed ortōq enterprises, private trading ventures that resemble early forms of private equity, how religious freedom became the first international law, and how the empire’s census, taxation and communication systems created transparency across continents.As the empire matured, Kublai Khan’s experiments with paper money, movable type and naval technology expanded global trade and spread ideas that helped ignite the European Renaissance. The discussion links thirteenth-century portfolio thinking to today’s private markets, showing why creative destruction only endures when creation wins.0:00 Creative destruction and leadership1:26 Learning loops, humility and meritocracy3:56 Parallels with private equity ownership10:22 Building value through safety and trade15:02 Census, taxation and the power of numbers16:21 Queens as capital allocators – the ortōq system19:19 Religious freedom as economic policy26:59 A family-office view of the known world31:49 Kublai Khan’s operating model37:36 Paper money and the limits of fiat45:02 Global trade and early financial flows46:05 Europe’s asymmetric gains from knowledge transfer52:13 Technology recombination in warfare58:12 Naval trebuchets and siege innovation1:01:27 Horse economies and resilience1:05:22 Genghis Khan’s Western intellectual legacy1:08:16 Enduring principles for modern investorsJack Weatherford is an anthropologist, historian and author of Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World and The History of Money. His work explores how ideas, trade and governance evolved across civilisations and how they continue to shape modern institutions.📘 Read Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World:https://www.amazon.co.uk/Genghis-Khan-Making-Modern-World/dp/0609809644private equity, private markets, Fund Shack, Ross Butler, Jack Weatherford, Genghis Khan, creative destruction, history of finance, financial history, ortōq, family office, meritocracy, value creation, governance, institutional investing, long-term capital, wealth management, portfolio construction, alternative investments, anthropology of markets, economic history, private equity podcast, private markets podcast🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Ross ButlerFounder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.comCONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/📘 Pre-order Ross Butler’s book 👉 Invest Like a Barbarian: Share in the spoils of the Private Markets revolution ♾️ http://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Fund Shack is the private equity podcast with in-depth conversations with investors, founders, and thought leaders shaping the future of private markets.🔗 More episodes www.fund-shack.com 📩 Subscribe to our Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/
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Fintech, Agentic AI & the Future of Financial Services | Apis Partners: Uday Goyal & Matteo Stefanel | Episode #78
Oct 2000:55:11Tap to summarizeRoss Butler speaks with Matteo Stefanel and Udayan (“Uday”) Goyal, Co-Founders and Managing Partners of Apis Partners, one of the world’s leading growth-equity investors in financial technology.Founded in 2014, Apis Partners has built a global fintech franchise by applying M&A discipline to private equity: identify the likely acquirers first, then build the company to fit their strategic blueprint. In this conversation, Matteo and Uday explain how they turned two decades of deal-making experience, from DLJ and Deutsche Bank to advising on Visa, Mastercard, and Worldpay into one of the most distinctive investment models in growth capital.They discuss:How Apis built credibility as a first-time fund manager, raising $290m at launch and scaling to a multi-fund global platform.The importance of the network as an asset, relationships forged over 20 years now drive sourcing, diligence, talent, and exits.“Exit-first” investing, designing portfolio companies around known strategic buyers and building to a defined market demand.Why 2025 marks the most disruptive moment in financial services history, as stablecoins, micropayments, and decentralised rails reshape how money moves.The rise of agentic AI, where your personal financial assistant will soon negotiate directly with your bank’s AI.Embedded finance and the subscription economy, from iPhones to autos, where distribution and customer ownership, not balance sheet, define value.The democratisation of wealth, as technology opens private-market access to a broader investor base while raising new questions about fairness, data, and risk.“Finance will be invisible, stitched into every product, every experience.”This is a forward-looking discussion about what comes after banking, where technology, capital, and human behaviour converge to redefine how financial systems work and who benefits from them.🎧 Watch the full conversation at www.fund-shack.com Follow Fund Shack on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts for more conversations with the people shaping private markets and the future of finance.🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹Thank you to our episode partner, Brookfield’s Private Equity Group: A Global leader in acquiring and driving operational transformation in industrials and essential business services.For more information, visit: www.brookfield.com/it-takes-industry🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹💼 Learn more at: 🌐 www.apis.pe🎙️Matteo Stefanel Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Apis PartnersLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matteostefanel/🎙️Udayan GoyalManaging Partner & Co-Founder, Apis PartnersLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ugoyal/Ross ButlerFounder and Host Fund Shack 🌐 www.fund-shack.comCONNECT on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rossbutler1/🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 📩 Subscribe to our Substack: https://privateequitypodcastfundshack.substack.com/ 📘 Pre-order Ross Butler’s book Invest Like a Barbarianhttp://q-r.to/Invest-Like-A-Barbarian🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹00:00 Fintech revolution begins, Apis Partners ranked global #201:45 Meet Apis Partners, fintech growth investors Matteo Stefanel & Udayan Goyal03:06 From Wall Street to growth capital, building a fintech platform05:01 Relationships as alpha networks turned into exits07:56 Exit-first model designing for strategic buyers11:24 Value creation buy-and-build and customer access16:21 Partnering with founders, trust and alignment18:20 Stablecoins & 24-hour liquidity, treasury reinvented23:54 Micropayments & continuous finance, real-time money flow27:27 Agentic AI, automation reshaping financial services31:15 Embedded finance & subscriptions, banking disappears36:52 Who owns the customer, brands vs banks42:46 Finance as social engine,from UBI to capital ownership47:00 Democratising wealth, opening private-market access50:20 Bitcoin vs stablecoins, new financial infrastructure54:28 the future of finance
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Inside Brookfield’s Operating Engine | Adrian Letts, Brookfield Private Equity | Fund Shack Ep. 77
Oct 1400:37:58Tap to summarizeBrookfield is renowned for running the companies it owns, not just financing them. In this episode, Ross Butler speaks with Adrian Letts, Managing Partner in Brookfield’s Private Equity Group and Head of Business Operations, to explore how the firm’s operator-led model drives value creation from origination through exit. Adrian explains how Brookfield embeds operators alongside investors, with shared carry, shared accountability, and a shared mandate to transform portfolio companies. He discusses organisational design as a true value lever, why smaller and senior operating teams outperform larger ones, and how AI and digital tools are reshaping performance management and working-capital efficiency across the Brookfield ecosystem.From aligning incentives and structuring teams to deploying data and AI in real assets, this is a masterclass in how private equity really creates value.#PrivateEquity #Brookfield #ValueCreation #FundShack #AdrianLetts #PrivateMarkets #OperationalExcellence #AI #AlternativeInvestments #Leadership
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