Merryn Talks Money
Merryn Talks Money with Bloomberg senior columnist Merryn Somerset Webb is your key to understanding how markets work – and how you can make them work for you. Every episode features a relaxed but in-depth conversation with a fund manager, a strategist, a Bloomberg expert or just someone Merryn finds particularly interesting in any given week. Listen in for the kind of insights and explanations everyone can use to help them make better saving and investing choices.
Episodes
In this special two-part series, John Stepek and Merryn Somerset Webb tell the extraordinary story of John Law: a fugitive Scots gambler who became the most powerful financier in France and helped invent the modern monetary system. From murder and exile to paper money, banking revolutions and spectacular collapse, Law’s life reveals why today’s financial system works the way it does—and why it sometimes blows up. ...
On this week's markets roundup, hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek look back at an unexpectedly strong year for global markets, with equities, gold and even silver delivering standout performances. They dig into whether 2025’s surprising rotations—from US mega-caps to value, energy and long-ignored small caps—could carry into next year, and what persistent inflation, UK rate cuts and shifting attitudes tow...
In this episode of Merryn Talks Your Money, Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with veteran financial planner Hamish Leng to unravel one of the trickiest issues in personal finance: how to pass wealth to your children without undermining their drive, confidence, or future independence. From the psychology of raising financially capable kids to the smartest, tax-efficient ways to gift money, Hamish shares four decades of insight into wh...
Merryn Somerset Webb speaks with Kurt Björklund, Executive Chairman of Permira, about where we are in the private equity cycle after several tough years and why he still believes in the asset class for the right kind of investor.
They discuss what “real” private ...
On this week's markets roundup, hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek unpack silver's climb to a record high, oil’s weakness and why it raises the prospect of an energy rebound, and the latest memo on AI from Oaktree Capital Management co-founder Howard Marks.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Host John Stepek speaks with leading economist Gerard Lyons about the UK’s latest budget and why he believes it lacks both vision and credibility. Lyons discusses the risks facing the UK economy—ranging from rising public debt to sticky inflation—while also outlining where interest rates, markets, and global growth may be heading in 2026. He closes with reasons for cautious optimism, including resilient corporate ...
Host John Stepek speaks with Helen Jewell, International CIO of Fundamental Equities at BlackRock, about an unexpectedly strong year for global equity markets — one in which most regions outside the US outperformed. Jewell explains why widespread diversification, renewed strength in European banks, and accelerating demand for energy infrastructure—driven largely by AI—are shaping her outlook for 2026. She also hig...
On this week’s markets roundup, hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek dig into the collapse of the proposed HICL–TRIG merger and the resurgence of shareholder activism reshaping the investment trust sector. They also explore the dramatic breakout in silver, gold’s renewed monetary significance, and Bitcoin’s latest bout of volatility—potentially tied to the unwinding yen carry trade and shifting g...
AI mania may be driving markets to new heights, but economist and author Dambisa Moyo argues the real question isn’t whether we’re in a tech-driven bubble—it’s what stage. Speaking with Merryn Somerset Webb, Moyo says that while valuations look stretched and investor excitement is unmistakable, there may still be a ways to go before things get bad.
Turning to the UK, Moyo, a member of the House of Lords...
Merryn is joined by Stephanie Flanders, Head of Economics and Government at Bloomberg, Helen Thomas, founder and CEO of Blonde Money, and Money Distilled newsletter author John Stepek, to break down key announcements from the November Budget and what those changes mean for markets, investors and households.
The conversation was recorded in front of an audience at Bloomberg's European Headquarters in London.
See omnystud...
UK consumers used to save very little — now they’re saving a lot, perhaps too much. Why? Kallum Pickering, Peel Hunt chief economist, joins host Merryn Somerset Webb to explain. He points to a “wealth shock”: when gilt yields surged in 2022, pension values fell sharply. At the same time, mortgage rates climbed and house prices stalled.
This...
In this week’s Merryn Talks Money market wrap, Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek sit down with Chris Clothier, Co-CIO of CGAM to discuss the proposed merger of two of the largest infrastructure investment trusts on the London market, HICL Infrastructure Company and The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG). Fund managers at CGAM are "appalled" by the proposal. Clothier sits down with our usual hosts to explain why and wha...
Curious about how offshore bonds really work, and whether they’re worth it? In this week’s Merryn Talks Your Money, Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with veteran financial adviser Paula Steele, director at John Lamb Hill Oldridge, to unpack the truth behind this often-misunderstood investment wrapper. From hidden tax traps to smart long-term planning strategies, this episode will info...
Host Merryn Somerset Webb speaks to Jim Reid, head of Macro and Thematic Research at Deutsche Bank, to unpack why too much cash is risky over the long run and why starting valuations drive real investment outcomes. They dig into 200 years of data on equities versus cash, the role of 60/40 portfolios, gold’s surprising century and today’s artificial intelligence-fueled market dynamics—with practical pointers on che...
In this week’s Merryn Talks Money market wrap, Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek dissect the latest UK housing trends ahead of the budget, exploring why falling mortgage rates might not be enough to lift property prices amid growing uncertainty. They also touch on the sluggish UK economy, the FTSE 100’s near-record run, and whether the AI boom in US markets is showing shades of a b...
Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with Richard Staveley, manager of the Rockwood Strategic, to unpack why UK smaller companies are so unloved—and why that may be a big opportunity. Richard explains Rockwood’s playbook: concentrated, benchmark-agnostic, value investing with hands-on “constructive engagement” to unlock change. They cover liquidity myths, the impact of passives and private equity, and where he see...
Hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek, senior reporter and author of the Money Distilled newsletter, unpack the week’s biggest market stories — from the Bank of England’s latest rate decision and Rachel Reeves’s fiscal “reset” to whether the AI boom is starting to wobble.
Don't forget to sign up for our live podcast taping in London on November 27:
Bloomberg personal finance reporter Suzanne Woolley is back on Merryn Talks Your Money. She discusses her latest in the 'Where to Invest' series, where investment experts share suggestions on where they'd put $1 million right now. Ideas include precious metals, luxury real estate and healthcare.
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/how-to-invest-a-million-dollars-q4-2025/?srnd=undefined
See omnystudio.com/listener fo...
Is the AI boom just a bubble or the start of something bigger? Host Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with Rob Arnott, founder and chairman of the board of Research Affiliates, to compare artificial intelligence mania with the dot-com era, unpack sky-high valuations and market concentration while exploring what rising competition, power constraints and Capex mean for Nvidia and the “Magnificent Seven.” Arnott shares a prag...
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Merryn Somerset Webb