David McWilliams on The Story of Money—and Why It Matters for Markets | #610

The Meb Faber Show - Better Investing

The Idea Farm

Management, Investing, Business

4.8 • 978 Ratings

🗓️ 19 December 2025

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today’s guest is David McWilliams, an economist, podcast host and author. David worked at the Central Bank of Ireland, UBS and BNP Paribas and is the founder of the Kilkenomics Festival, a unique blend of economics and stand-up comedy. His book is called The History of Money: A Story of Humanity, which is my favorite book from 2025. In today’s episode, David walks through the evolution of money over the last 5,000 years. He explains why money is a foundational social technology that is central to every aspect of our civilization, from the political to the artistic. He delves into historical anecdotes—from clay tablets in Mesopotamia to Gutenberg’s printing press to Martin Luther’s disruptive influence on the church. Throughout the episode, he emphasizes that economists need to do a better job helping people understand money and its role in navigating modern economic principles. (0:00) Starts (1:26) David explains the Kilkenomics Festival (3:41) David McWilliams on "Money, The History of Money, A Story of Humanity" (9:55) Evolution and trust in money throughout history (26:28) Impact of the Gutenberg printing press and Martin Luther (36:42) Historical perspectives on speculation and losing money (43:18) Future of economics, storytelling, and equity culture differences (49:18) Educating youth on finance and investing ----- Follow Meb on X, LinkedIn and YouTube For detailed show notes, click here To learn more about our funds and follow us, subscribe to our mailing list or visit us at cambriainvestments.com ----- Sponsor: Join Alpha Architect’s ⁠⁠LIVE webinar⁠⁠ Feb 3rd to learn if a 351 Exchange may fit your clients’ needs. Before the webinar, visit ⁠⁠Alpha Architect’s 351 Education Center⁠⁠ for use cases, tools, FAQs, upcoming launches, and more. ----- Follow The Idea Farm: X | LinkedIn | Instagram | TikTok ----- Interested in sponsoring the show? Email us at Feedback@TheMebFaberShow.com ----- Past guests include Ed Thorp, Richard Thaler, Jeremy Grantham, Joel Greenblatt, Campbell Harvey, Ivy Zelman, Kathryn Kaminski, Jason Calacanis, Whitney Baker, Aswath Damodaran, Howard Marks, Tom Barton, and many more. ----- Meb's invested in some awesome startups that have passed along discounts to our listeners. Check them out here! ----- Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). ----- Ad Disclaimer: This information does not constitute advice or a recommendation or offer to sell or a solicitation to deal in any security or financial product. Certain information contained herein has been obtained from third party sources and such information has not been independently verified by The Idea Farm. No representation, warranty, or undertaking, expressed or implied, is given to the accuracy or completeness of such information by The Idea Farm or any other person. While such sources are believed to be reliable, The Idea Farm does not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of such information. The Idea Farm does not undertake any obligation to update the information contained herein as of any future date. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Medfavor show, where the focus is on helping you grow and preserve your wealth.
0:10.9	Join us as we discuss the craft of investing and uncover new and profitable ideas, all to help you grow wealthier and wiser.
0:16.9	Better investing starts here.
0:19.5	Metfabor is the co-founder and chief investment officer at Cambria Investment Management.
0:22.5	Did it industry regulations, he will not discuss any of Cambria's funds on this podcast.
0:25.8	All opinions expressed by podcast participants are solely their own opinions and do not reflect
0:28.9	the opinion of Cambria Investment Management or its affiliates.
0:31.2	For more information, visit Cambriainvestments.com.
0:35.1	Today's show is sponsored by Cambria.
0:37.2	Do you hold legacy investment positions with significant gains?
0:40.9	What if you could transition into an ETF without facing a large tax bill?
0:44.8	You can with a 351 ETF exchange.
0:48.3	Here's how it works.
0:49.6	Investors contribute stocks or other securities to a newly formed ETF in exchange for
0:54.3	ETF shares. As long as the special rules and diversification requirements are met,
0:59.0	the investor is essentially able to cede the launch of the ETF without an immediate
1:03.1	taxable event. Because ETFs typically don't distribute any capital gains, investors don't
1:08.4	face taxes until they sell their ETF shares, allowing for
1:11.4	better control over the timing of the tax event. Are you ready to explore a 351 ETF exchange?
1:17.4	Visit cambriafunds.com forward slash 351 to take the next step in innovative, tax-savvy investing
1:23.9	with Cambria today. Cambria Investment Management LP, Camberia is a registered investment
1:27.3	advisor. Information set forth here is for informational
	...

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