Leaders with Joseph Cass

Brookfield Asset Management CEO Connor Teskey joins Joe Cass to talk about becoming the youngest CEO in the firms history, a letter that changed his life forever, the role of gut feeling in investing - and his playbook for leading a $1 Trillion empire.
 
00:00 Becoming CEO at 38-years-old
02:17 The letter that changed Connor's life
05:07 Connor telling his wife he got the job
08:00 How much of investing is gut feeling?
09:34 Being the youngest CEO in the room
13:32 The biggest misconceptions about AI
17:50 Are we building too fast in AI
21:00 Will AI create mass wealth or mass unemployment?
23:18 The role of credit ratings in private markets
26:14 Brookfield in 2036 Follow
 
Joe on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephcass/

Churchill Asset Management's Ken Kencel joins Joe Cass to talk about the culture and legacy of his old firm Drexel Burnham Lambert, presenting to Michael Milken, starting multiple successful financial businesses and his secret to building strategic, long-term relationships.
 
00:00 Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1980's
05:41 The culture and legacy of Drexel
08:23 Presenting to Michael Milken
09:48 Starting Churchill before the financial crisis
13:22 Selling to The Carlyle Group
16:32 Calling up David Rubenstein
18:26 Building a $100Bn AUM business from scratch
28:01 Ken's childhood and being raised by his Uncle
35:57 Ken's secret to building strategic, long-term relationships
 
Follow Joe on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephcass/

BlackRock's Global Chief Investment Strategist Wei Li joins Joe Cass to talk about whether the AI boom is a bubble, why she thinks we're still in the early build-out phase, and how a wider-than-ever range of outcomes is reshaping portfolios.
 
00:00 Is there an AI bubble?
05:08 Day in the life of Wei Li
06:14 How to stand out in an AI world
08:08 Blackrock's internal AI platforms
10:02 Wei's most important datapoint
11:18 Wei's contrarian investment belief
12:31 What is it really like working at Blackrock?
13:37 Inside Blackrock's Investment Committee
14:45 Biggest misconceptions about Blackrock
18:29 Public to Private Markets power shift
21:14 How Wei communicates
23:28 The importance of an S&P rating
24:40 How to be disciplined in a whipsaw market?
26:38 The rise (and fall?) or US market dominance
28:55 Wei's advice to young professionals
 
Follow Joe on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephcass/

In this episode, Joseph speaks with Mark Haefele, Chief Investment Officer at UBS, about what truly separates lasting wealth from wealth that gets eroded, across investing, family dynamics, and generational planning. They explore why inheritance planning can be the hardest financial puzzle wealthy families face, how billionaires think about keeping families aligned, and what happens when emotions, identity, and "behavioral noise" run the portfolio instead of a clear plan.
Chapters:
0:00 The biggest mistake wealthy investors make
1:37 What are the world's wealthiest people most worried about right now?
2:44 Personal habits of billionaire families
4:24 What asset class are wealthy families increasing exposure to?
5:03 The 'Godfather' approach to inheritance
7:21 Succession TV show in real life
9:08 Why do some families retain wealth, and others lose it all?
10:28 The billionaire asset allocation template
12:06 What long term risk are markets underpricing?
13:11 An unstable decade for investors
14:08 UHNWI's view of private markets
16:40 Investing sophistication of UHNWI's
18:10 UHNWI appetite for private credit
19:15 Preferred asset classes of the wealthiest people in the world
20:12 The importance of credit ratings
21:09 Has working with billionaires changed Mark?
22:15 Mark's #1 tip for young people to build wealth today

This episode features Blair Jacobson, Co-President of Ares Management Corporation, discussing private credit investment strategies, risk management, and firm growth. He shares insights on how Ares maintains a conservative approach to avoid losses, the importance of relationships and reputation in deal origination, and the firm's expanding areas like asset-backed credit and wealth management. Blair also touches on the evolving role of credit ratings in private markets, the firm's involvement in sports investments, and offers advice for young professionals entering finance amidst technological disruption.
Chapters:
00:00 What could go wrong in private credit
1:34 How prepared is Ares for a downturn
6:55 Football & sports investment – Chelsea & Athletico Madrid
10:17 Finding sports investment opportunities  
10:58 How does Ares find new business
14:57 Finding lucrative deals
16:07 Private credit ratings
18:56 Big insurers moving into private credit
20:13 Building a career in the AI era
22:13 "Relationship training"
24:00 Why is Ares Co-Founder Michael Arougheti so successful
Recording date: 18 February 2026.