<description>&lt;p&gt;Why do companies care about their share price so much? Is Switzerland in danger of losing its banks? What would regime change in Venezuela do to global oil markets? Today on the show, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong answer listener questions. Or try to. Also, they go short gift cards and long crypto islands.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: &lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at &lt;a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;unhedged@ft.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/content/84b92eac-201d-4525-ac4a-602ac2ece3a0" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Our listeners write in with queries about Venezuela, prediction markets and more

Why do companies care about their share price so much? Is Switzerland in danger of losing its banks? What would regime change in Venezuela do to global oil markets? Today on the show, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong answer listener questions. Or try to. Also, they go short gift cards and long crypto islands.&nbsp; For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: <a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer</a>. You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at <a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unhedged@ft.com</a>. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/84b92eac-201d-4525-ac4a-602ac2ece3a0" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</a><hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

We take some questions

<description>&lt;p&gt;Today on the show, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong take a look at some revealing numbers about jobs, inflation and borrowing against the Treasuries market. Also they go short “funny” videos from private equity and short Wham!&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: &lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at &lt;a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;unhedged@ft.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6b4e63f9-094b-4af3-9e50-8a3571e3be47" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

What can we learn from new figures about jobs, inflation and leverage?

Today on the show, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong take a look at some revealing numbers about jobs, inflation and borrowing against the Treasuries market. Also they go short “funny” videos from private equity and short Wham!&nbsp; For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: <a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer</a>. You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at <a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unhedged@ft.com</a>. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/6b4e63f9-094b-4af3-9e50-8a3571e3be47" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</a><hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Three numbers that matter

<description>&lt;p&gt;Silver is on a tear this year, outperforming gold and even crypto. Today on the show, Rob Armstrong and Katie Martin look at the markets for substitutes for fiat currency. Also they go long the Christmas goose, and long sweet pastry.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: &lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at &lt;a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;unhedged@ft.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/content/19685308-5adb-4cb6-b089-7be6809c3301" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

What’s driving the run-up in alternatives to fiat currency?

Silver is on a tear this year, outperforming gold and even crypto. Today on the show, Rob Armstrong and Katie Martin look at the markets for substitutes for fiat currency. Also they go long the Christmas goose, and long sweet pastry.&nbsp; For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: <a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer</a>. You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at <a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unhedged@ft.com</a>. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/19685308-5adb-4cb6-b089-7be6809c3301" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</a><hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Gold, silver and crypto

<description>&lt;p&gt;What went right in 2025? What could go wrong in 2026? Recorded last week for the FT’s digital conference The Global Boardroom, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong talk with Ian Smith, the FT’s senior markets correspondent, about the incredible resilience of the US stock market, and the challenges ahead. Also, they go long boring companies and short &lt;em&gt;KPop Demon Hunters&lt;/em&gt;.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: &lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at &lt;a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;unhedged@ft.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/content/dcb87b20-9620-41d1-a027-bf5e433dd9ef" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Markets had an incredible year. Can that continue? 

What went right in 2025? What could go wrong in 2026? Recorded last week for the FT’s digital conference The Global Boardroom, Katie Martin and Rob Armstrong talk with Ian Smith, the FT’s senior markets correspondent, about the incredible resilience of the US stock market, and the challenges ahead. Also, they go long boring companies and short KPop Demon Hunters.&nbsp; For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: <a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer</a>. You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at <a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unhedged@ft.com</a>. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/dcb87b20-9620-41d1-a027-bf5e433dd9ef" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</a><hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Can 2026 match 2025?

<description>&lt;p&gt;Netflix and Paramount are in a bidding war to take over Warner Bros Discovery and its historic collections of movies and television series. Today on the show, Rob Armstrong talks to US deals correspondent Oliver Barnes and US finance editor James Fontanella-Khan about a battle that will have a lasting impact on entertainment and the news. Also they go long indie cinema and short Christmas.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: &lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at &lt;a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;unhedged@ft.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.ft.com/content/7894265d-dae0-4e96-8884-50b0ca42a8d7" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Paramount and Netflix battle to acquire a legendary studio

Netflix and Paramount are in a bidding war to take over Warner Bros Discovery and its historic collections of movies and television series. Today on the show, Rob Armstrong talks to US deals correspondent Oliver Barnes and US finance editor James Fontanella-Khan about a battle that will have a lasting impact on entertainment and the news. Also they go long indie cinema and short Christmas.&nbsp; For a free 30-day trial to the Unhedged newsletter go to: <a href="https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/unhedgedoffer</a>. You can email Robert Armstrong and Katie Martin at <a href="mailto:unhedged@ft.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">unhedged@ft.com</a>. <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/7894265d-dae0-4e96-8884-50b0ca42a8d7" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</a><hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Who gets to buy Warner Bros Discovery?

Katie Martin, Robert Armstrong and other markets nerds at the Financial Times explain the big ideas behind what’s happening in finance right now. Every Tuesday and Thursday.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

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