A little over 10 years ago I sent out a research note to my clients saying that the financial crisis was entering a new stage and that policymakers were behind the curve. I remember becoming bearish when the yield curve inverted in 2006 and becoming worried that it was a sign of strain in the banking system as it always had in the past. I’d long been bearish on housing, but the way the crisis evolved and spread through the financial system took me by surprise. Still, I was well versed in banking and debt and I felt like I was explaining things that mainstream economists and especially Central Bankers didn’t fully understand. A client of mine said I should start writing more publicly. And so 10 years ago on this day I published the first blog post on a platform I called “Pragmatic Capitalism”.
I was shocked to see the website grow to over 1 million page views in its first year. And I was even more shocked by the responses I received on a daily basis. My message resonated with people. Over time I realized that there was a deep demand for understanding how our financial system works. And so I started publishing more and more “how tos” and educational type work. In the last 10 years I’ve published 11,000+ posts, expanded an entire investment management business around a blog, published an okay book because of a blog, published some of the most widely read research on SSRN, interacted with and become friends with some of the most amazing/important people in finance and economics and met/emailed with countless amazing people. Crazy.
I’ve always made an effort here to remain apolitical and objective. I’ve always tried to express my honest opinion as opposed to catering to page views and fear based propaganda. I’ve always tried to educate and reciprocate. And I am so happy that my message has resonated with even a few people. I haven’t always been right and I’ve learned a lot along the way, but I’ve always remained honest and open-minded. I hope you think I’ve done an okay job. There are so many people that I want to thank that I don’t even know where to start….So here’s to 10 years and hopefully 10 more. It’s been a wild journey and I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to read what little I have to say.
Mr. Roche is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Discipline Funds.Discipline Funds is a low fee financial advisory firm with a focus on helping people be more disciplined with their finances.
He is also the author of Pragmatic Capitalism: What Every Investor Needs to Understand About Money and Finance, Understanding the Modern Monetary System and Understanding Modern Portfolio Construction.