SI371: Trends Don’t Form Randomly. They Form Reflexively ft. Richard Brennan

SI371: Trends Don’t Form Randomly. They Form Reflexively ft. Richard Brennan

Richard Brennan returns this week to explore how markets truly move - not through randomness or rationality, but through impact, feedback, and memory. What begins with a single trade builds into structure, not pattern; alignment, not noise. Drawing from neuroscience and fractal geometry, Rich challenges the idea that markets can be understood without understanding interaction. The episode builds toward a pointed exchange on position sizing - closed equity versus dynamic exposure - not as a technical footnote, but as a reflection of first principles. In a system where the path shapes the outcome, how you define risk... often reveals how you think the world works.

-----

50 YEARS OF TREND FOLLOWING BOOK AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO FOR ACCREDITED INVESTORS - CLICK HERE

-----


Follow Niels on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube or via the TTU website.

IT’s TRUE ? – most CIO’s read 50+ books each year – get your FREE copy of the Ultimate Guide to the Best Investment Books ever written here.

And you can get a free copy of my latest book “Ten Reasons to Add Trend Following to Your Portfoliohere.

Learn more about the Trend Barometer here.

Send your questions to info@toptradersunplugged.com

And please share this episode with a like-minded friend and leave an honest Rating & Review on iTunes or Spotify so more people can discover the podcast.

Follow Rich on Twitter.

Episode TimeStamps:

00:00:00 – Welcome to the Systematic Investor Series

00:00:23 – Niels’ intro, show setup, and warm welcome to Rich

00:00:57 – Heatwave down under: context and small talk

00:02:10 – Rich: divided brain, AI vs embodiment, and markets needing rules

00:07:50 – AI’s edge shrinks prediction windows; why that helps trend following

00:10:35 – Gold’s violent selloff; electricity vs oil as the new macro lens

00:14:51 – “Trend heaven”: why the backdrop now looks robust

00:18:12 – Post-GFC compression vs today’s decoupling and trends

00:22:43 – Impact and reflexivity: trades reshape the next trade

00:28:23 – Non-ergodic markets: path dependence beats Gaussian assumptions

00:35:48 – Volatility ≠...

Episoder(899)

GM95: When Consensus Gets the Cycle Wrong ft. Dario Perkins

GM95: When Consensus Gets the Cycle Wrong ft. Dario Perkins

In this episode, Alan Dunne is joined by Dario Perkins to examine why the global macro consensus may be fundamentally misreading the current cycle. The conversation moves from US fiscal stimulus and F...

28 Jan 1h 3min

SI384: Building an Inflation-Proof Portfolio ft. Yoav Git

SI384: Building an Inflation-Proof Portfolio ft. Yoav Git

In this episode, Niels hosts Yoav Git to explore inflation risk, bond fragility, and the changing role of trend following in a world defined by supply shocks and declining trust. Drawing on recent res...

24 Jan 1h 1min

IL45: Where Markets Reveal Human Error ft. Alex Imas

IL45: Where Markets Reveal Human Error ft. Alex Imas

Today we discuss one of the most popular and influential economic books of the last few decades - The Winner’s Curse. Originally published in 1994, a new version has just been released and we are join...

21 Jan 54min

SI383: When Signals Matter More Than Stories ft. Nick Baltas

SI383: When Signals Matter More Than Stories ft. Nick Baltas

Today, we are joined by Nick Baltas to examine how narratives, signals, and structural design are reshaping trend following at the start of 2026. The conversation moves from investor storytelling and ...

17 Jan 59min

GM94: When Capitalism Reboots and Crashes Again ft. Mark Blyth

GM94: When Capitalism Reboots and Crashes Again ft. Mark Blyth

As the long era of neoliberal certainty frays, Mark Blyth argues that we are drifting back toward a 19th century world of rival blocs, imperial habits and dangerous illusions. In this conversation, he...

14 Jan 1h 7min

SI382: The End of Globalization, the Rise of Trends ft. Richard Brennan

SI382: The End of Globalization, the Rise of Trends ft. Richard Brennan

The new year opens with a shift hiding in plain sight. As globalization recedes and the world fractures into spheres of influence, Rich argues this isn’t just a political story - it’s a structural shi...

10 Jan 1h 8min

GM93: The Calm Before a Systemic Reckoning ft. William White

GM93: The Calm Before a Systemic Reckoning ft. William White

William White returns to assess a world edging closer to systemic stress. Drawing on decades advising central banks, he describes a macro regime defined not by temporary shocks, but by a deep reversal...

7 Jan 1h 5min

SI381: Process Over Pain: Trend Following in an Unforgiving Market (Group Conversation Part 2)

SI381: Process Over Pain: Trend Following in an Unforgiving Market (Group Conversation Part 2)

In part two of our year-end roundtable, the Systematic Investor team goes beyond performance to ask harder questions about the path forward. Are today’s drawdowns a signal of structural change? - or j...

3 Jan 1h 3min

Populært innen Business og økonomi

stopp-verden
dine-penger-pengeradet
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
e24-podden
rss-borsmorgen-okonominyhetene
utbytte
finansredaksjonen
pengesnakk
tid-er-penger-en-podcast-med-peter-warren
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
pengepodden-2
okonomiamatorene
morgenkaffen-med-finansavisen
stormkast-med-valebrokk-stordalen
lederpodden
rss-markedspuls-2
rss-investering-gjort-enkelt
flypodden
rss-finansforum-2