Sosnoff / Ratigan - Truth or Skepticism from tastylive

We’re seeing governments intervening in markets on multiple continents. In China, state employees have been banned from using foreign mobile phones. In Europe, the EU enacted new regulations with hopes of spurring competition. Are these moves out of desperation or just low hanging fruit for regulators looking to say they’re fighting for the little guy? Tom and Dylan discuss this and more on this week’s episode.  

 If financial institutions had a three strike rule, Wells Fargo would have been out a long time ago. The bank is back in the news this week after being fined yet again. Financial reprimands haven’t worked thus far. The question becomes, when do regulators threaten to shut down the bank? On this week’s podcast, Tom and Dylan take a look at the situation with Wells Fargo, the impact of just a handful of stocks on the broader market and what the price of bitcoin might imply.

The housing crises of 2008 was in large part caused by mortgage lenders approving loans to people they knew couldn’t afford them. The lenders then turned around and sold those mortgages to investors in the form of securities. Lenders made money underwriting and money selling securities. But when borrowers defaulted, lenders faced no risk. They had no skin in the game. On this week’s episode, Tom and Dylan discuss the necessity of having skin in the game and how that creates accountability.  

There’s a financial graveyard of fund managers who made a right call on the market which paid off huge. Maybe it was the housing crisis. Maybe it was the dot com bubble. When it comes to finance, rock star status can be attained with just one right call. It doesn’t matter if the last right call you made was the 1987 crash. Do it once and suddenly, you’re assumed “to know.” In truth, no one knows anything. Markets are random. But we want to believe someone knows so we can turn our money over to them and feel safe. What drives this and why do we treat people who only made one right call in their career like oracles? Tom and Dylan discuss this and more.

A basic tasty tenant is to put time on your side. Trade small, give yourself time to be right, and recognize that markets are random. Dylan Ratigan wants to understand an irony in that sentiment. Tom has taken big and seemingly risky shots. Is there a flaw in tasty's core tenants? Tom gives some nuance on this week's episode of Truth or Skepticism.

Not since the advent of the internet have people been so excited about a technological development as they are with artificial intelligence (AI). If you buy the hype, AI is the panacea for all our woes. War, inflation, politics, you name it, AI is being hailed as the antidote. To be fair, there are places where AI probably will improve our lives. But those places are where inefficiencies exist. In efficient spaces, like equity markets, can AI make a difference? Tune into this week’s episode to hear Tom and Dylan’s take on AI.

On today’s episode, we’re talking about capitalism and its tradeoffs. Opportunity brings liquidity but it also attracts grifters. Is there a better alternative or are grifters simply a byproduct that can’t be avoided? Also, new legislation is being proposed that would prohibit legislators from owning or trading in stock. Whether or not that makes sense or is just an optics play is open to debate. Tune into this week’s episode for all this and more.

Everyone seems convinced Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for their job. But maybe it’s a case of fear being overpriced. AI will have its place but it will also have its limitations. The role of AI; a win for Ripple and crypto; and a Paul Bunion reference. Tune in to this week’s episode to hear Tom and Dylan on all this and more.

Trickle-down economics has been at the center of Republican economic theory since the term was coined back in the early 1980s. It’s predicated on less government involvement. Democrats are promoting what they’re calling Bidenomics, an economic system with a greater role for government programs. It's like a broken record. On this week's episode Tom and Dylan argue why the future of economics is tied to digital assets but no one is talking about it... yet.

If you watch markets long enough, you’ll see how they adapt in near instant time. The occasional black swan event may catch markets off-guard, but things like sanctions over microchips are of no consequence because the market’s already adapted. It makes for great discussion but little economic impact. Also, why Elon owns the electric vehicle market. All this and more on this week’s episode.