Ben Mackovak on The Secret Sauce of Investing in Banks | #519

Today’s guest is Ben Mackovak, Co-Founder of Strategic Value Bank Partners, an investment partnership specializing in community banks. Ben also sits on the board for several banks, giving him unique insight into what’s going on in this area.
It's been a wild ride lately for the banks. 2023 was the biggest year ever for bank failures. There are concerns about commercial real estate risk in the banking system, the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates at an incredible pace, and valuations for the entire sector are at a steep discount to the market. So, we had Ben join us to talk about all of this and share if these concerns are justified or if there is still opportunity in the space.
(1:22) - Welcome Ben to the show
(2:08) - Overview of Strategic Value Bank Partners back in 2015
(5:40) - Distinguishing between community and regional banks
(7:42) - Discussing bank failures and reforms
(28:49) - The state of banks today
(33:13) - Banks exposure to commercial real estate risk
(35:58) - Engaging with banks
(40:13) - The impact of fintech
(49:35) - Revealing Ben’s most controversial viewpoint
(54:02) - Ben’s most memorable investment
Learn more about Ben: Strategic Value Bank Partners
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Past guests include Ed Thorp, Richard Thaler, Jeremy Grantham, Joel Greenblatt, Campbell Harvey, Ivy Zelman, Kathryn Kaminski, Jason Calacanis, Whitney Baker, Aswath Damodaran, Howard Marks, Tom Barton, and many more. 
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