This week, we speak with Perth Tolle, who is the founder of Life + Liberty Indexes, and sponsor of the Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM index). Prior to forming Life + Liberty Indexes, Tolle was a private wealth advisor at Fidelity Investments in Los Angeles and Houston. Prior to Fidelity, Tolle lived and worked in Beijing and Hong Kong, where her observations led her to explore the relationship between freedom and markets. Tolle was named one of the Ten to Watch in 2020 by Wealth Management Magazine and one of the 100 People Transforming Business by Business Insider in 2021.
As a former resident of Hong Kong, she recognized the impact of how economic freedoms impact market performance. It was an idea that she believed could generate above-average returns at the same time the fund would avoid funding some of the worst governments in the world.
The index is developed by starting with two sets of freedom metrics from the Fraser Institute and Cato Institute. Tolle then applies that to a starting universe of 26 Emerging Market countries. That larger data set gets reduced to 18, then 10-11 countries. The 10 most liquid companies in each country (ex-SOEs) are selected.
A list of her favorite books is here; A transcript of our conversation is available here this week.
You can stream and download our full conversation, including the podcast extras on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, Bloomberg, and Acast. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business next week with Spencer Jakab, editor of Heard on the Street column at the Wall Street Journal, and author of the Ahead of the Tape column. He began his career as an analyst at Credit Suisse, where he eventually became Director of Emerging Markets Equity Research. He is the author of “The Revolution That Wasn’t: GameStop, Reddit and the Fleecing of Small Investors.”
Perth Tolle’s Favorite Books
The Bogle Effect: How John Bogle and Vanguard Turned Wall Street Inside Out and Saved Investors Trillions by Eric Balchunas
Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight for Justice by Bill Browder
Freezing Order: A True Story of Money Laundering, Murder, and Surviving Vladimir Putin’s Wrath by Bill Browder
