Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee

Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee. Explore the latest trends in global credit markets with the biggest movers and shapers on Wall Street and the City, hosted by financial reporting veteran Lisa Lee.

Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee is a business podcast hosted by Lisa Lee, with 81 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Lisa Lee hosts Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee, a business show with 81 episodes published.

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  Episode #80

  Goodwater Capital’s co-founder says valuation is a critical factor for venture capitalists

  Oct 2, 202633 min

  “Right now everything seems very elevated in the private market. So all the more, ‘stock picking’ as venture capitalists is really important,” says Eric Kim, co-founder of Goodwater Capital, on the latest episode of Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee. Goodwater is a global venture capital firm that counts no fewer than 17 ‘unicorns’ amongst its investment successes, including such storied names as TikTok (via musical.ly), Spotify, Monzo and Kakao. M&A is hot right now, says Kim. Incumbent companies with large market caps and strong cash positions are looking to acquire to have that next AI story and are getting rewarded by the Street. “That over time... being able to use your war chest if you built out as a Fortune 500 company is well worth it,” says Kim on purchasing AI companies and teams. “I think there's a lot of knocking on the doors right now.” It’s an exciting moment to be investing in startup since AI applications are just getting started. “Software is going to be completely rewritten right now, it's like a blank slate, and that is exciting on all levels,” says Kim. “We can connect the dots to something that is way bigger than we ever imagined before. He contends that venture capital involves an element of suspending disbelief. “[For] our team, we emphasise you really need to first suspend disbelief, dream the dream – and then pressure-test from there to see, is this plausible or not?” “How do they want to build a product? We have to accept that it won’t be perfect. And the resilience that they have as entrepreneurs is even more so,” he says. “So do they have a data model? Are they creating a product that will be trusted over time? And is this a team that we see, long-term, is going to build a generational company? Generally, if you see those three things, we’re willing to suspend disbelief. We have to do that within venture capital.” The landscape for venture capital has shifted in an important way, with the market becoming more sophisticated in providing liquidity solutions and become more institutionalised. “It’s an ‘and’ now. It used to be M&A, IPO or nothing. But now... there’s also this institutionalisation of the venture capital asset class. I think it’s healthy, actually, because you have more players, you have more different liquidity solutions, [and] you have big secondary funds coming in market as well. And that offers the ability for both liquidity in the midterm, but outsize outcomes in the long-term as well.” Kim also discusses regulation and ethical issues surrounding AI, Goodwater’s notable investment successes, and current equity market volatility.

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  Episode #79

  Conning NA CIO says Fed should show patience in inflation battle

  Sep 25, 202635 min

  The US Federal Reserve should not be tempted to overreact as it seeks to tackle rising inflation, says Cindy Beaulieu, CIO of Conning North America, on the latest episode of Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee. A combination of rising energy prices and the lingering after-effects of the Trump administration’s tariffs agenda mean inflation continues to be a key issue for the economy. For Beaulieu, Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s recent speech at Jackson Hole highlighted a focus on rising core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) remaining at an elevated level, and the need to address it as a priority. However, she believes the Fed should tackle the issue cautiously. “Our thought is there’s a lot of noise [in the data], so be careful,” she says. “Don’t overreact, because overreaction could stifle the economy in a way of unintended consequences and actually cause a recession, which is certainly not what they want to do. “Being patient would really put them (the Fed) in a much better position.” She suggests that secular changes in the nature of the economy, such as an ageing population, deglobalisation, and a much riskier global geopolitical environment, mean that the Fed’s long-held 2% inflation target may no longer be achievable. While Beaulieu believes that the transformative potential of AI across the economy is very real, she notes that “the last thing” you want to have is a portfolio that is overly-concentrated on the AI trade. “I think some of the things that are really important... is first understanding exactly who the borrower is, where they sit, and what type of legal protections you have should things go in the wrong direction,” she says. “Theres been a lot of issuance in the structured markets, and not every one of those deals is created equal. Some of those leases are much more favourable for the companies that are going to occupy the data centre, than they are for the lenders to that particular facility. So you have to be very, very careful as you are pursuing this trade.” For Conning, an asset manager focused on the insurance industry with over USD 190bn in AUM, a key focus of the credit cycle since COVID has been ensuring their portfolios are positioned neutral to the duration they need to be for the liabilities of their various insurance clients. “We’ve invested... across the investment-grade areas of the market, but we have been a little bit less focused on the below-investment-grade parts of the market now for a couple of years,” Beaulieu says. “We have given up a little bit of return in that, but we are also about protecting principal, and so we’re willing to give up a little bit of that incremental return.” She says Conning’s focus, especially for the last 18 months, has been on the structured areas of the fixed income market. That has included investments in agency and non-agency mortgages, esoteric asset-backed securities, high-quality CLOs, and private placements. She also discusses the shifting outlook for the upcoming US mid-term elections, recent regulatory developments in the insurance sector, and dynamics in the labour market.

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  Episode #78

  PGIM Credit’s co-CIO says we are in the early stages of credit crowding

  Sep 18, 202633 min

  Two pools of capital – the franchising of AI digital infrastructure buildout and government spending – are interest rate-insensitive and require a massive quantum of debt, says Gregory Peters, co-chief investment officer at PGIM Credit. Peters, who in his role oversees $1.2 trillion of assets under management, says the Federal Reserve has to hike interest rates to remain credible. But even with a few more hikes, he doesn’t see the current policy as being restrictive. “I’m not sure It quells inflation either,” Peters says. A slowdown of the AI buildout and capex would be a positive for investors and also help to stem inflation, he argues. Whether that will happen, though, is “still very much an open question.” But he notes that this will be the key driver of investment returns here over the next 12-24 months. “History shines a very poor light on excess capital being deployed in a short period of time,” he says. “It’s a trail of tears.” In addition, Peters shares his insights on emerging markets, Europe, Asia, and public and private debt markets.

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  Episode #77

  Pemberton’s co-founder says interest rate markets are very concerned about inflation

  Sep 11, 202635 min

  “Interest rate markets are telling you that they really are concerned about inflation, and to a certain degree, concerned about the size of government bodies,” says Symon Drake-Brockman, co-founder and managing partner at Pemberton Asset Management, on the latest episode of Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee, taped on 9 September 2026. The re-engagement of hostilities between US and Iran has set that back in place, he adds, especially since we are moving into winter, when demand for gas and energy will increase. Drake-Brockman says US Treasury yields look quite high, but potential buyers are trying to work out whether the political debate between the White House and the Fed is going to continue. “If it does, then rates could probably go a bit higher,” he predicts. Europe will see more M&A. The world has fundamentally changed into three economic blocs – the US, China, and Europe, and the first two have been building large companies that operate through their entire economies and internationally, while Europe has lagged. But a new M&A framework will facilitate consolidation and that will ultimately bring Europe closer together, he contends. Drake-Brockman also discusses private credit and recent regulatory scrutiny. He and Pemberton are in dialogue with the Bank of England, and he shares that “they felt very comfortable that the industry is in a good place.”

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  Episode #76

  Oak Hill Advisors’ CIO says Treasury needs to bring a “bazooka” to make an impact

  Sep 4, 202638 min

  “The market clearly is saying that he (US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent) didn’t threaten a bazooka, he didn’t bring a bazooka, and he hasn’t shown a bazooka,” says Alan Schrager, chief investment officer at Oak Hill Advisors, on the latest episode of Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee. The US Treasury Department has the capabilities to make an impact on rising sovereign bond yields, but the world hasn’t seen a major or real commitment to buy the long end, Schrager says: “In the absence of a bazooka, it’s very hard to make too much of an impact.” Schrager, who in his role as CIO helps oversee OHA’s $100bn+ of AUM, also discusses inflation, the health of corporations, the crowding out of capital by artificial intelligence investments, and private credit. While corporations are performing well and there’s no default cycle in near sight, there are idiosyncratic issues. The upshot is that private credit managers are going to end up owning more companies “than we would have traditionally done”, Schrager predicts, and they have to be prepared for that.

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