Chris Stott launched a new boutique. Then COVID hit.

Even at the best of times, building a new portfolio from nothing is a challenging task. But for Chris Stott, Chief Investment Officer at 1851 Capital, the challenge was truly unique. After a 12-month break from the industry, he raised $80 million for his new firm (including a chunk of his own money) in late 2019. February 1^st looked like a good time to start investing, given his track record of outperforming during reporting season. For the first three weeks, everything was business as usual. But in the final week of February, fear took over as reality sunk in for markets.

In this week’s episode of The Rules of Investing podcast, Stott tells us how he reacted to the changed market conditions, whether he thinks the worst has passed for markets, and he shares one Aussie small cap that's riding tailwinds from the COVID shutdowns.

Content discussed:

• Peter Fitzsimons - Kokoda
• The Last Dance

• 1:52 – Chris’ experience during his time-off
• 3:52 – The challenges of starting a funds management business
• 6:10 – 1851 Capital’s investment philosophy
• 8:22 – The once in a decade opportunity in REITs
• 10:35 – Building a portfolio from scratch
• 13:03 – Unexpected challenges as he built the portfolio
• 16:41 – Have we seen the worst of the crisis?
• 20:58 – How Chris is positioning the portfolio going forward
• 23:59 – Why are renowned investors getting the market wrong at the moment?
• 27:42 – The biggest risks for markets and economies
• 30:58 – Who might be the next US President?
  
• 31:54 – A company riding tailwinds from COVID
• 34:51 – Chris answers our three favourite questions