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I recently had the privilege of interviewing one of the youngest (if not the youngest) hedge fund managers in the world via email. Described as the ‘Wohl of Wall Street’, Jacob Wohl is not your average 19year old. He is the founder and CEO of Montgomerry Asset Management, a Beverly Hills based hedge fund. Jacob recently opened an office in China. As a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, Mr. Wohl launched a campaign of GoFundMe to block the presidential vote recount in Wisconsin. Jacob was in the news in 2016 for many wrong reasons from recruiting a ‘Director of Fun’ to being investigated by the National Futures Association (NFA). I curiously asked Jacob why he gets so much criticism on the internet and the media and he said something that I think is really powerful; “Some losers despise success”
Montgomerry Assets recently announced opening a new office in China to cater for its Chinese investors and investments.
Below is the interview with Mr. Wohl:
Mawunyo: Do you think the younger generation will be investing any differently than the older generation?
Wohl: I think that our generation will invest in much the same way that other generations have, except that I believe you will see more and more emphasis on informational edge coming from technological sources than from traditional research methodologies.
Mawunyo: What is your investing strategy?
Wohl: In investing, my mission is to price risk better than the next guy. If I can price risk correctly, than I can get be compensated healthily for being short risks that other people won’t take and for being long risks that other people rush in to take. I do this across equities and fixed income, and I aim to construct portfolios which are diversified and contain several different asymmetric outcomes to the upside. The edge in this type of investment strategy is derived from two components. The first is my fundamental ability to assess risks, both in terms of their frequency and their severity, and the second is my unwavering efforts to hedge and seal off the downside when I’m wrong.
Mawunyo: What industry do you believe has lots of revenue potentials?
Wohl: I look at risk at the range of possible future outcomes. I like to have positions in businesses where the range of possible future outcomes is reasonably predictable. Over the long-term, unlike a lot of investors, I like the prospects for tobacco companies. Recently there’s been a lot of consolidation in that sector, and I think that you will continue to see out-performance from tobacco stocks.
Mawunyo: What is your view on activist investors?
Wohl: I think that activist investors generally help contribute to the transparency and efficiency of markets, so generally I’m a supporter of allowing activist investors to do what they do.
Mawunyo: What is the worst mistake you have made as an investor?
Wohl: The biggest mistake that I’ve made as an investor was spending a Summer learning about technical analysis. It was a complete waste of time. These days I rarely every look at charts anymore. I think that charts do more harm than good, in that they can develop a erroneous bias in you.
Mawunyo: What made you interested in investing?
Wohl: Some people are interested in sports, others are interested in films, I’m interested in investing and I’m not sure exactly why. It’s just what I’m obsessed with.
Mawunyo: Who is your favorite investor?
Wohl: I’m a big fan of many investors, but I would have to say that my favorite is David Tepper.
Mawunyo: Do you see yourself becoming an investor as a full-time job?
Wohl: I’m already investing as a full time job in running Montgomery Assets, and I love every second of it.
Mawunyo: Where do you see Jacob Wohl in the next 5years?
Wohl: In five years I want to be a smarter investor than I am now. I’d also like to continue to grow my business over the next 5 years.
Published by Mawunyo Adjei
