SI361: The Four Faces of Trend Following ft. Richard Brennan
Top Traders Unplugged
Niels Kaastrup-Larsen
4.8 • 670 Ratings
🗓️ 15 August 2025
⏱️ 87 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Richard Brennan joins Niels for a conversation that redefines how trend following is understood. Behind the shared language lie four distinct archetypes - each built around a different purpose. Richard walks through them with clarity, then unpacks the trade-offs: static sizing vs. vol targeting, symmetry vs. asymmetry, speed vs. patience. A real-world portfolio test drives the point home... some strategies don’t just prefer diversification, they depend on it. This episode is about design, but more than that, it’s about alignment. Because in a field crowded with performance metrics, the most important question often goes unasked: what exactly is this built to do?
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50 YEARS OF TREND FOLLOWING BOOK AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO FOR ACCREDITED INVESTORS - CLICK HERE
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Episode TimeStamps:
01:58 - ChatGPT5 is on fire
06:04 - The AI revolution could be the end of humanity
14:23 - Industry performance update
19:19 - An overview of what topics this episode will cover
21:23 - The decisions that really matter in trend following
27:10 - The 4 archetypes of trend following
34:05 - Its not about facts, its about objectives
40:09 - 1st debate: Diversification vs. concentration
48:52 - 2nd debate: Absolute momentum vs. cross-sectional momentum
50:21 - 3rd debate: Volatility targeting vs static small bits
54:02 - What trend followers sometimes get wrong about volatility and position sizing
57:48 - 4th debate: Symmetry vs asymmetry
01:02:00 -...
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. |
| 0:27.2 | Welcome all welcome back to this week's edition of the Systematic Investor Series with Richard Brennan and I, Niels Castro Blasen, where each week we take the pulse of the global market |
| 0:31.3 | through the lens of a rules-based investor. And I also want to say a warm welcome if today is |
| 0:37.1 | the first time you're joining us |
| 0:38.2 | and if someone who cares about you and your portfolio |
| 0:41.2 | recommended that you tune into the podcast |
| 0:43.8 | I would like to say a big thank you |
| 0:45.6 | for sharing this episode with your friends and all colleagues |
| 0:49.2 | it really does mean a lot to us |
| 0:51.1 | rich fantastic to be with you again. How are you doing down under? |
| 0:57.3 | Not bad, Niels. It's pretty chilly down here, so I've got my jumper on. I know it's pretty |
| 1:02.6 | warm up there in the northern hemisphere, but I think next week I'm going to be joining all of you |
| 1:07.3 | up there, so I'm going to be, I'll get my bathers out and my togs and my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, so I'm coming forward to, you in person. It's strange after all these years that I've never met you in person, so I really look forward to that. And, but you know what? So actually, it's very interesting in Europe, just to stay on that topic for a second. |
| 1:31.7 | So today I'm actually in Scandinavia, and it's very pleasant up here. |
| 1:36.8 | I mean, it's not very warm, but it's warm enough, right? |
| 1:39.7 | Switzerland, very hot at the moment, not to say Southern Europe, massive wildfires and 40 plus |
| 1:47.3 | degrees Celsius at the moment. |
| 1:49.0 | So, you know, but I think you're coming to kind of the sweet spot when you come to Europe. |
| 1:55.5 | So it'll be super nice. |
| 1:58.2 | Now, we got a really wonderful outline thanks to you today which I'll discuss |
... |
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