19: Thorney's Alex Waislitz - Micro Caps and the Trappings of Investing

[i3] Institutional Investment Podcast

Alex Waislitz is the founder and Chairman of Thorney Investment Group, one of Australia’s most successful private investment groups. After being lent $1.15 million, he went on to invest in micro and small caps and ultimately gathered a fortune of $1.39 billion. In this interview, Daniel Grioli takes Waislitz back to the start and dissects how he went about creating his wealth. Waislitz discusses the trappings faced by investors and also has some advice for startups looking for capital. Overview: 3:00 Receiving my first dividend cheque 6:00 Keep your alternative options alive 9:00 Lessons learned from Richard Pratt 14:00 I like the business of business 16:00 If you dream big, you achieve big. 18:00 Turning $1 million into $4 million 21:45 Constructivism; being activist in a non-hostile way 26:30 What is your investment philosophy? 34:30 Determining position sizes. 37:30 Many fund managers cut their profits too early 46:00 Not all small cap companies are inherently risky 48:00 Capacity in a micro cap strategy 50:30 Fairfax and activist investing 54:15 Future of traditional media 57:00 Tailor-made newspapers 1:00:30 Investing in the future is not for everyone 1:02:00 Disruption has never been easier 1:06:00 Facebook and privacy on the internet 1:07:30 What advice would you give startups looking for capital? 1:10:00 Best and worst investments 1:16:30 The luck factor