Don't Cry For Me, I have all the Chandeliers

I spent the week in Argentina, a most enterprising place if you are the national government. The current administration, taking a page from the Venezualan playbook nationalized all pension funds sucking billions out of the investment management space. Needless to say, it devastated the pension and hedge fund businesses in Buenos Aires. Now that Brazil is booming, the sentiment is shifting back to the privatization. Funny how the winds change.

Here is a fun tip for those of you who are wondering why there is so much arbitrage in ADRs in the region. Well, my friends, it has absolutely nothing to do with arbitrage at all. In fact, investors expect to lose money. What they gain is access to foreign exchange. With a government that watches money flows at the currency exchanges like a hawk, the only way to move money in and out of Argentina is through equities. Buy a local stock in local currency, trade it for an ADR, and sell it for US dollars. Let's see how long the loop hole lasts!

If you are not traveling for business, I suggest you spend some time buying leather. If you prefer antiques, Buenos Aires has cornered the market on chandeliers. You will never in your life find more in one place. Strange, but true.

As the Future Catches You

I took a picture of this old Reuters terminal in Scotland last week. For some reason, they have one of the very interesting pieces of nostalgia that to me underlines the importance of innovation, but also defines how innovation is so very different today than it was thirty years ago in the information space. Before my time, but in the memory of my mentors, there were two big problems to solve, both requiring capital. 1) Build the content, 2) Build the connections.

In the last decade, since the internet abolished the second requirement, I have watched my industry converge data and content into a single solution at an astonishing rate while yelling, "Less is more!" the entire way. That game is coming to an end. The next (notice I did not say final) frontier ahead is all about the design, style, approach, technique, elegance of execution and content (yes it still matters) bundled up with the knowledge to make the information you deliver relevant to the world's most sophisticated customers that will make the next company king.

In a nutshell, the winner of the next round will be the company who understands that it is not what you do that matters, it is how you do it.

Radio and TV Dinner with Yo-Bama

Carr and Tony invited Em and myself down to DC to the Radio and Television Correspondent's dinner. It was great fun to see the faces including this one, although he kept his distance.

The China Club

I had a quick trip to Hong Kong for work and had just enough time to do two cool things. I had a tux made and had a great dinner with friends and colleagues at the China Club. There really is no place like it on earth. It has the musty feel of a Casablanca, and the old school charm that makes you feel like you just stepped onto the British port in 1920 gearing up to take China by storm. This is my favorite phone photo of the head chef exhibiting his prowess making noodles for the crowd.

Dubai, My, My

The tallest building in the world, but nobody is in it.

It is in the middle of nowhere, with nothing around it. There are no economic factors for building these buildings, just relatives trying to outdo each other.

There is 60% occupancy, and in the last month, there has been a 10% decline in population, yet everywhere you look, there is more capacity going up without pause. I counted a minium of 24 cranes from any point in the city building more buildings.

Most of Dubai's GDP is based on real estate. Once the cards start to fall, if you can't pay your bills you can't declare bankruptcy, it doesn't exist. You either have to leave, or you go to jail.

All of these dooming factors aside, Dubai is a lovely place so long as you stay indoors.

Fondue Dreams

Fondue with the team in Geneva. I can still taste it.