Unusual Whales Pod Ep. 69: Fed Holds Rates, Global Politics, Oil, and the Economy

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on March 18th, 2026.Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Marko Bjegovic https://x.com/MBjegovicMartin Pelletier https://twitter.com/MPelletierCIOHosted by:Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**Disclaimer:Any content referenced in the video or on Unusual Whales are not intended to provide legal, tax, investment or insurance advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. Nothing on Unusual Whales should be construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any security by Unusual Whales or any third party. Certain investment planning tools available on Unusual Whales may provide general investment education based on your input.

As part of our Quantum computing series, we’re talking with leadership from our sponsor Xanadu, a company building photonic quantum technology aimed at real-world use. We’ll get into what quantum computing actually is, where the industry stands today, and touch a bit on where the hype may be running ahead of the reality. Before we get started, this episode is brought to you by Xanadu, but that does not imply a direct endorsement of the company. Nothing in this interview should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any security, and you should always do your own research or confer with your financial advisor before making any investment decisions in any companyJoining me is the founder and CEO of today’s sponsor Xanadu, Dr. Christian Weedbrook. Xanadu is a Toronto-based photonic quantum computing company he launched in 2016 with the goal of making quantum computers useful and broadly accessible. Originally from Australia, he took an unconventional path into the field, moving from film and advertising into mathematics, physics, and ultimately quantum science. He earned his PhD in Quantum Information Theory from the University of Queensland and later completed postdoctoral work at both MIT and the University of Toronto.Sponsored by XanaduAI: xanadu.aiJoined by Christian Weedbrook: https://x.com/_cweedbrookHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.

Unusual Whales Pod Ep. 67: Fed HOLDS Rates at First FOMC Meeting of 2026This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on January 28th, 2026. From housing, to the absolute faceripper in Gold and Silver, the panel breaks down how the macro landscape looks as we breach into 2026.Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngJonny Matthews https://x.com/super_macroMartin Pelletier https://twitter.com/MPelletierCIOCem Karsan https://x.com/jam_croissantHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**Disclaimer:Any content referenced in the video or on Unusual Whales are not intended to provide legal, tax, investment or insurance advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. Nothing on Unusual Whales should be construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any security by Unusual Whales or any third party. Certain investment planning tools available on Unusual Whales may provide general investment education based on your input.

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on January 26, 2026, sponsored by PlusAI. Nicholas hosts two co-founders of PlusAI, to walk through where they see autonomous trucking headed next.David Liu is the CEO and co-founder of PlusAI, with a background that blends deep technical training and startup experience, including a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford. He leads the company’s strategy and commercialization efforts as autonomous trucking moves toward scale.Tim Daly is the chief architect and co-founder of PlusAI, bringing more than two decades of experience in AI and large-scale systems. He leads the technical development of PlusAI’s autonomy platform, focused on making real-world, highway-ready self-driving technology work reliably.PlusAI Website: https://plus.ai/Joined by:PlusAI (David Liu): https://x.com/PlusAI_IncTim Daly: https://x.com/thetimjrHosted by:Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on October 29th, 2025. Nicholas hosts a panel of macroeconomic experts and investors to discuss the economy’s continued contradictions: growth hasn’t collapsed, yet inflation refuses to bow out, and the labor market is showing patches of fatigue. All this while the government shutdown is delaying key data releases, leaving the Fed to fly partially blind. Global friction persists from trade tensions to energy supply jitters, and the panel breaks down each of these topics in turn!Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngJonny Matthews https://x.com/super_macroMartin Pelletier https://twitter.com/MPelletierCIOHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**Disclaimer:Any content referenced in the video or on Unusual Whales are not intended to provide legal, tax, investment or insurance advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. Nothing on Unusual Whales should be construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any security by Unusual Whales or any third party. Certain investment planning tools available on Unusual Whales may provide general investment education based on your input.

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on September 17th, 2025. Nicholas and macroeconomic experts and investors to discuss the economy giving us a mixed bag: GDP rebounded in Q2, but inflation remains stickier than anyone hoped, the labor market is cooling, and markets are trying to read the Fed’s mind while balancing sheets and bond yields do their own thing. Housing is still pricey, consumer spending shows resilience but is uneven, and global factors from trade friction to energy volatility are keeping many on edge Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngJonny Matthews https://x.com/super_macroMartin Pelletier https://twitter.com/MPelletierCIOHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**Disclaimer:Any content referenced in the video or on Unusual Whales are not intended to provide legal, tax, investment or insurance advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority.

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on July 30th, 2025. Nicholas hosts a panel of macroeconomic experts and investors to discuss the labor market, oil prices flirting with a breakout toward $90 again, bond yields seemingly undergoing an existential crisis. The Fed has been “playing it cool” while half the committee whispers of September, and rate cut predictions get revised more often than the narrative around the Epstein list.Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngBob Elliott https://x.com/BobEUnlimitedCem Karsan https://twitter.com/jam_croissantAdam Ozimek https://x.com/ModeledBehaviorMarko Bjegovic https://x.com/MBjegovicHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**Disclaimer:Any content referenced in the video or on Unusual Whales are not intended to provide legal, tax, investment or insurance advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority.

This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on June 18th, 2025. Nicholas hosts a panel of macroeconomic experts and investors to discuss the macroeconomic outlook in both the United States and abroad amidst softening GDP, sticky inflation, nervous bond market, housing fatigue, and the ever-reassuring backdrop of geopolitical tension. So thank you all for listening to our FOMC panel, where the vibes are uncertain at best, and the yield curve doesn’t wanna talk about it!Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngBob Elliott https://x.com/BobEUnlimitedCem Karsan https://twitter.com/jam_croissantHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**

Unusual Whales Pod Ep. 61: FOMC, Jerome Powell, Inflation, and the Economy in 2025This episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on May 8th, 2025. Nicholas hosts a panel of macroeconomic experts and investors to discuss the continued Fed Rate Pause, holding rates at 4.25% to 4.5%, Trump’s enduring tariff battle and international trade war, the economy, and how things are looking from a macroeconomic point of view heading into the latter half of 2025.Panel:Joseph Wang https://twitter.com/FedGuy12Thelastbearstanding https://twitter.com/LastBearStandngBob Elliott https://x.com/BobEUnlimitedCem Karsan https://twitter.com/jam_croissantMichael Kao https://twitter.com/UrbanKaoboyHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/**

Unusual Whales Pod Ep. 60: Tariff Developments and Potential Trade Deals sponsored by ETFsThis episode of the Unusual Whales Pod was recorded Live on March 26th, 2025. Nicholas is joined by the CIO of Tema ETFs Yuri Khodjamirian, sponsored by Tema ETFs who manages the American Reshoring ETF Trading Symbol: $RSHO. Along with Yuri and a panel of experts, Nicholas explores the topics of tariffs, reshoring, nearshoring, and the global macroeconomic implications amidst ongoing tariff uncertaintyPanel:Yuri Khodjamirian https://x.com/YuriKhodjamAdam Ozimek https://x.com/ModeledBehaviorMarko Bjegovic https://x.com/MBjegovicBen Golub https://x.com/ben_golubBrad Freeman https://x.com/StockMarketNerdHosted by: Nicholas FNS: https://twitter.com/NicholasFNSUnusual Whales: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesThis Pod is not financial advice. Unusual Whales Inc. is not registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or any state securities regulatory authority. The stock market is risky, and any trade or investment is expected to have some, or total, loss. Please do research before any trade. Do not use this information for financial decisions or for investing. You should consult your legal or tax professional regarding your specific situation.Unusual Social Media:Discord: https://discord.com/invite/unusualwhalesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/unusualwhalesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/unusualwhales/Reddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/unusual_whales/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unusual_whalesTwitter: https://twitter.com/unusual_whalesYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/unusualwhales/Merch: https://unusual-whales.creator-spring.com/