“Big Short” Investor Steve Eisman Isn’t Calling a Crash—But He Sees One Big Risk

Steve Eisman (0:03)

So, if you own the S&P, you're not diversified, you're versified.

Amber Kanwar (0:08)

We've got Steve Eisman on the podcast, The Legendary Investor from The Big Short, and he doesn't hold back.

Steve Eisman (0:13)

I own a lot of these companies. I own Nvidia, for example. I watch and I worry. It's like everybody else.

Amber Kanwar (0:20)

Do you still run a short book?

Steve Eisman (0:22)

I think to short this stuff, what motivates people? Armies? No. Gold? No.

You see it in the market all the time.

Amber Kanwar (0:34)

You mentioned the Canadian banks. There was a time that you were very vocally short.

Steve Eisman (0:38)

I was wrong.

Amber Kanwar (0:40)

You want to say it again?

Steve Eisman (0:41)

Sure, I was wrong.

Amber Kanwar (0:42)

Do you like being known as The Big Short guy?

Steve Eisman (0:45)

As far as I can tell, it's going to be on my tombstone, so I've learned to accept it.

Amber Kanwar (0:55)

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The content provided in this podcast is for informational purposes only, and does not constitute financial investment or professional advice. The views expressed by the host and the guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any organization or company. The host and guests may maintain positions in any securities discussed on the podcast. Always consult with a qualified financial advisor or professional before making any investment decisions. On this episode, we discussed Amazon, Alphabet, and Eli Lilly, which are all stocks that I own. Hey, everybody. Welcome to a very special episode of In the Money with Amber Kanwar. If you're watching us, you can see that we're not at our normal set. We are downtown Toronto, right on Bay Street for the Picton MindShift Investor Conference. Now, part of that means that we get to interview Steve Eisman. He is a legendary investor and made his name during the financial crisis. You might have seen the movie, The Big Short. Well, he was played by Steve Corral and was one of the few individuals who really studied and made money from the subprime mortgage crisis. And since then, people have been going to him wondering, what's the next crisis? So we go in depth and talk about all the potential pain points in the market in this episode. I won't say more beyond that because I know you guys just want to get into it. Remember, we're nominated for Signal Awards, two categories. Please vote because I really, really want to win.

The links, Jillian, producer Jillian has put it in the show notes. OK, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, Steve Eisman.

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Steve Eisman, thank you so much for joining me on the podcast.

Steve Eisman (3:32)

Well, I'm glad to be here.

Amber Kanwar (3:33)

I'm so excited to talk to you. I started my career in journalism during the financial crisis.

Steve Eisman (3:38)

How lucky you.

Amber Kanwar (3:39)

Yeah, so it was a real minting. It also means that like things were bad for a little bit, and then I've kindly kind of only known good times since, right? And I think that's true of a lot of investors. So I think voices like yours are really important. And I'm excited to kind of get into all the risks that we see out there. But everybody refers to you as Steve Eisman, The Big Short Guy. Do you like being known as The Big Short Guy?

Steve Eisman (4:02)

As far as I can tell, it's going to be on my tombstone. So I've learned to accept it.

Amber Kanwar (4:05)

Because I feel like people must always be coming to you. And it's the same that's true of everybody who like called it in 2008 It's like, okay, what's next, right? I feel like people always want to know what's the next crisis. And I listen to you, that's not necessarily your MO.