SI246: The BIG CTA ETF Debate ft. Andrew Beer & Tim Pickering
Top Traders Unplugged
Niels Kaastrup-Larsen
4.8 • 712 Ratings
🗓️ 3 June 2023
⏱️ 85 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today, we are joined by Andrew Beer and Tim Pickering for a heated debate on some of the most important changes that we are seeing in the CTA industry. We discuss how ETFs can be used in the CTA industry and the pros and cons of using indices to represent manager performance, why Tim and Andrew are fundamentally different in how they approach the way retail investors can access CTA strategies and how they disagree on the definition of "pure alpha", the use of replication strategies and much more.
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Episode TimeStamps:
00:50 - The macro perspective
03:56 - Industry performance update
06:17 - First CTA to launch a ETF
09:57 - The managed futures index - what and why?
17:40 - Tim's experience with indices
20:15 - Building an asset allocation bucket
22:36 - A discussion on alpha
30:58 - Getting exposure to CTA return streams
37:10 - Why Tim would avoid replication strategies
44:18 - The biggest positions drive performance?
51:45 - Are ETFs reliable?
55:47 - Getting the timing right
01:00:49 - A terrible product?
01:04:26 - Why did Tim's US ETF fail?
01:08:07 - What is alpha?
01:11:00 - Are lower fees better for investors?
01:12:14 - Getting the correlation right
01:13:21 - Question from Oliver
01:15:59 - Teasing the next debate
01:22:38 - Thanks for listening
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're about to join Neil's Kostrup Larson on a raw and honest journey into the world of systematic investing |
| 0:07.2 | and learn about the most dependable and consistent yet often overlooked investment strategy. |
| 0:13.2 | Welcome to the Systematic Investor Series. |
| 0:33.4 | Welcome and welcome back to this week's edition of the Systematic Investor Series with Andrew B&I, Niels Kastaflarsen, where each week we take the pulse of the global market through the lens of a rules-based investor. |
| 0:39.4 | Today's episode is even more special, as we are also joined by returning guest, Tim Pickering, |
| 0:45.6 | for a good old-fashioned debate on some of the most important changes that we are seeing in the CTA industry relating to how people access these strategies. |
| 0:50.8 | Andrew and Tim, it's great to have you both back on the podcast this week. |
| 1:13.1 | Tell me what's going on where you are today. Andrew. Thank you. Well, first of all, thank you for having me back. Yeah, so, look, I mean, I think from a macro perspective, I think what's been taking a lot of time and energy is just the exhausting nature of U.S. politics and what is, you know, going to happen over the course the next couple of years. It seems like we were in sort of a little bit of a respite last year when, |
| 1:17.9 | you know, it was more about the Fed and inflation what was happening. I think a lot of attention |
| 1:21.6 | is turning back to politics. And it's just kind of a dreary and depressing presidential |
| 1:26.8 | process that we're beginning. And I think what you saw with the debt ceiling, which again, it's just kind of a dreary and depressing presidential process that we're beginning. |
| 1:28.7 | And I think what you saw with the death ceiling, which again, it's these external events, |
| 1:32.8 | which just kind of keeps everybody waiting in abeyance while, you know, it feels like you have |
| 1:38.6 | two clown cars driving toward each other playing a game of chicken. |
| 1:42.2 | It's just, you know, I hope we just have a more interesting and productive macro environment over the next few months. |
| 1:49.0 | Absolutely. |
| 1:50.0 | And I was even thinking just about what's going on in New York where you are today and you're laying out this whole macro picture for me, |
| 1:56.0 | which I wanted to ask you anyway, so I appreciate that. |
| 1:59.0 | Andrew. |
| 2:00.0 | Tim Calgary, what's going on? Anything exciting? |
| 2:03.7 | Yeah, we're a Calgary-based manager, which is a little bit of an outlier, obviously. That's the |
| 2:09.4 | focus of the energy business in Canada and arguably the largest oil reserve in the world is |
... |
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