The Timeless Investor Show
The Timeless Investor Show explores how serious thinkers build wealth, resilience, and lasting success across generations.Hosted by Arie van Gemeren, CFA - The Timeless Investor Show connects history, philosophy, and real-world investing lessons into practical frameworks for today's investors, with a core focus on real estate investing.We study empires, cycles, currencies, and capital stewardship - and translate timeless principles into real-world action.Think well. Act wisely. Build something timeless.
The Match King: How Ivar Kruger’s $6 Billion Fraud Brought Europe to Its Knees
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In 1932, the world’s richest man pulled the trigger that ended an empire.
 Ivar Kruger, known as The Match King, controlled ¾ of the world’s match production, financed governments across Europe, and was hailed as the “savior of Europe.” But behind the empire was one of the greatest financial frauds in history—$6 billion (2024 value) in forged bonds, fake subsidiaries, and Ponzi-style leverage.
In this episode of The Timeless Investor Show, host Arie Van Gemeren, real-estate fund manager and financial historian, unpacks how Kruger’s empire rose an...
Venice: How a Blind 97-Year-Old Built a 1,000-Year Empire | The Timeless Investor
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April 12th, 1204 AD. A 97-year-old blind man led the assault on Constantinople—the richest city on earth—and walked away with three-eighths of an empire. His name was Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice. And what happened next changed the course of Western history.
This is the story of how Venice—built on mud, wooden stakes, and 118 swampy islands—became the wealthiest trading empire in medieval history. How they lasted over 1,000 years as an independent republic. How they controlled Mediterranean trade for 600+ years. And how they invented mass production six centuries before Henry Fo...
From Slave to Supreme Admiral: Zheng He's Treasure Fleet & 6 Investing Lessons
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What if China had a 100-year head start on European colonial dominance—and threw it away?
In 1405, nearly a century before Columbus, Chinese Admiral Zheng He commanded 317 ships and 27,800 men. His fleet was the largest in human history. His flagship was five times bigger than the Santa Maria. He reached East Africa, mapped the Indian Ocean, and built trade networks across three continents.
Then, within years of his death, bureaucrats burned the maps, dismantled the ships, and made it illegal to build ocean-going vessels. Europeans who came later weren't di...
The Shadow Banking Collapse of 1772 (And Why Wall Street Is Selling It To You Again)
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December 27, 1772. Clifford & Co.—one of Europe's most prestigious banking houses—shuts its doors with nearly $1 billion in liabilities (in today's money). Within weeks, the contagion spreads: 20 banks collapse across Amsterdam, London, Hamburg, and beyond. The world's first global financial crisis.
The culprit? Mortgage-backed securities on Caribbean plantations, marketed as "safe and stable" to Dutch middle-class investors who trusted the reputation of shadow banks operating outside any regulation.
In 2025, history is rhyming.
BlackRock, Apollo, State Street, and KKR are packaging private credit for Main Street investors usin...
The PotosĂ Silver Scandal: How Fraud Destroyed the Spanish Empire
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What happens when the world's most trusted currency becomes worthless overnight? Not through war or conquest, but fraud so massive it brings down an empire.
This is the story of the PotosĂ mines scandal - how Spanish officials debased silver coins, stole billions, and destroyed the foundation of global finance in the 1600s. The Spanish Empire went from controlling 25% of the world to defaulting repeatedly, all because trust in their currency collapsed.
But this isn't just ancient history. The patterns are repeating today with massive government debt, currency concerns, a...
Black Friday 1866: The Banking Collapse That Changed Finance Forever | Shadow Banking Crisis History
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In May 1866, the world's largest financial institution collapsed in a single day, triggering the first global banking crisis and reshaping modern finance forever. Overend, Gurney & Company wasn't just any bank - they were THREE TIMES larger than their nearest competitor and considered the safest institution in the world. When they fell, over 200 companies failed, the Bank of England abandoned the gold standard, and the entire global financial system nearly imploded.
In this episode, real estate fund manager and financial historian Ari Van Gemeren reveals:
How a conservative Quaker bank became...From $500M in Called Loans to Self-Storage Empire: Brad Minsley's Vertical Integration Playbook
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In 2008, Brad Minsley faced every real estate developer's nightmare: $500 million in loans called across 27 banks. Most operators would have been wiped out. Instead, Brad fought back, survived the crisis, and used those hard-won lessons to build Ten Federal - one of the most innovative self-storage companies in America.
Today, Ten Federal operates 120 facilities with revolutionary automation technology, proprietary DaVinci locks, and just 0.6 employees per store (compared to 2+ at major REITs). Their funds have consistently outperformed, with their 2019 fund finishing #1 among all commercial real estate funds that year.
In...
The Sassoon Dynasty: From Baghdad to Bombay - How Refugees Built Asia's Real Estate Empire
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They called him the Rothschild of the East. But while the Rothschilds moved paper, David Sassoon built infrastructure.
In 1829, he fled Baghdad with nothing but two saddlebags of gold. By 1860, his family controlled the largest trading house in Asia. By 1940, they owned half of Shanghai.
This isn't just another rags-to-riches story. It's a masterclass in turning displacement into dynasty.
In this episode, we explore:
How a stateless refugee became the unofficial bank of BombayWhy owning warehouses beats owning goods (the original REIT model)The concept of "...The Kipper & Wipper Crisis: History's Forgotten Financial Catastrophe
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1621. The Thirty Years War is bleeding German treasuries dry, and desperate princes discover what seems like the perfect solution: improve their coins by making them cheaper to produce. What could go wrong?
Everything.
In this deep dive into one of history's most overlooked financial disasters, we explore how professional coin clippers called "Kipper & Wipper" accidentally created Europe's first hyperinflation crisis, crashed international trade, and taught the world lessons about currency debasement that we're still ignoring today.
From medieval mint operations...
Andrew Jackson's War on the Money Monopoly
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The president had a bullet lodged in his chest and gold coins in his pocket. His enemy controlled America's entire money supply. What happened next changed American finance for 200 years.
In 1833, President Andrew Jackson did something unthinkable - he destroyed the most powerful financial institution in America. The Second Bank of the United States controlled the nation's money, could create credit from nothing, and when challenged, its president deliberately crashed the economy to prove his power.
This isn't just history - it's prophecy. Jackson's war against paper...
Ray Kroc - The Real Estate Empire Hidden Behind Golden Arches
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Most people think Ray Kroc built a hamburger empire. They're wrong.
Ray Kroc built the world's largest real estate company, and he just happened to serve hamburgers on top of it. By the time of his death, McDonald's owned more retail real estate than any other company in the world - not Walmart, not Sears, McDonald's.
In this episode, we unpack how a 52-year-old milkshake machine salesman turned a simple hamburger stand into a real estate empire worth hundreds of billions of dollars. From near-bankruptcy to global domination, Kroc's...
John Law: The Gambler Who Destroyed France
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The year is 1720. A Scottish murderer who escaped death row has just become the richest man in history. He controls France's entire money supply, tax collection, and colonial trade. In six months, he'll flee Paris dressed as a woman, leaving behind the world's first modern financial collapse.
Meet John Law - convicted killer, mathematical genius, and the man who created paper money, quantitative easing, and stock market bubbles 300 years before the Federal Reserve existed. His Mississippi Company scheme turned servants into millionaires overnight, crashed to zero, and set in motion events...
Real Estate Operations: 8 Years, 550+ Units, Lessons Learned
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After 8+ years and $150M+ in real estate acquisitions, here's what actually drives returns: operations, not deals.
In this special episode, I break down the operational lessons that separate winning real estate investors from the rest. From why I stopped talking to middle management and started calling leasing agents directly, to the $2,200 water heater mistake that taught me about cost control.
What You'll Learn:
The "get in the weeds" philosophy - why Basil II managed his empire from the battlefield, not the throne roomTenant retention early warning...The Man Who Built Florida: Henry Flagler's $3 Billion Railroad to Paradise
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In 1885, Florida was nothing but swamps and mosquitoes. By 1915, it was America's winter playground. One man made that transformation happen: Henry Flagler.
This is the story of the most audacious real estate development project in American history - how a 55-year-old Standard Oil co-founder spent $100 million building a 400-mile railroad through impossible terrain to create an entire state's economy.
In this episode, you'll discover:
How Flagler used vertical integration to control every piece of the value chainWhy he built luxury hotels as "marketing" for land developmentThe...53 Years. 2,000 Units. 0 Blowups. Ron Danz on Real Estate That Lasts
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Ron Danz never set out to be a podcast guest. He just quietly built one of the most resilient real estate portfolios in the Pacific Northwest.
Starting with $500 down on a beat-up house near the University of Washington, Ron spent the next 53 years methodically acquiring 2,000+ apartment units and 400,000 square feet of commercial real estate—without ever blowing up.
In his first-ever podcast interview, he shares the timeless lessons that helped him survive six major real estate cycles, from the Boeing Bust to the Volcker Fed to the Gr...
Andrew Carnegie: From $1.20 a Week to $15 Billion - The Steel Baron's Blueprint for Operational Excellence
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$1.20 a week → $480 million exit. How did a 13-year-old Scottish immigrant become one of the richest men in history?
In this deep dive into Andrew Carnegie's life, we uncover the four timeless principles that built the largest steel empire in the world—and why they're more relevant than ever for real estate investors.
What You'll Learn:
🔍 Information Arbitrage: How Carnegie turned telegraph operator insights into massive investment wins (including a $217 investment that generated $5,000 annually)
⚙️ Cost Control Obsession: The revolutiona...
The Hidden Wealth Transfer: How Insurance Captives Control the Game
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Most real estate investors think insurance is just a cost of doing business. They're wrong.
Insurance is the ultimate wealth transfer mechanism—and most of us are on the losing side.
In this episode, I sit down with Tony DeFede from Union Risk to uncover how captive insurance programs work, why Warren Buffett has used them for decades, and how real estate investors can flip the script from paying premiums to collecting them.
What You'll Learn:
Why insurance premiums have exploded 2-3x (and wh...Blood, Marble & Rent Rolls: How the Medici Built History's First Real Estate Empire
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Picture this: April 26th, 1478. Florence Cathedral. Lorenzo de' Medici is attending Easter Mass when assassins strike. Knives flash. Blood splatters across marble floors. His brother falls dead. Lorenzo barely escapes with his life.
But here's what's fascinating about this moment—the assassins weren't just trying to kill two men. They were trying to destroy what might be the most successful investment empire in human history.
In this episode, I take you inside the original family office. We're going inside the Medici Method—how a wool merchant named Giov...
America's Monetary Dictator: How Paul Volcker Saved an Empire
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When empires face their greatest test, they need leaders willing to be hated for doing what's right.
In 1979, America stood at the crossroads every dying empire faces: destroy the economy to save the currency, or destroy the currency to save the economy. Nixon had already chosen poorly in 1971. By 1979, 13% inflation was bleeding American credibility worldwide.
Enter Paul Volcker—6'7" of unelected, unaccountable monetary discipline.
In this episode, we explore how one man's willingness to inflict maximum pain on the present preserved the American empire for an...
Marcus Crassus: From Bankruptcy to Billions Through Ancient Real Estate
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The year is 53 BC. In a Parthian tent, molten gold burns down the throat of Rome's richest man. Marcus Crassus - worth $2+ billion in today's money - dies choking on the very metal that made him famous.
But how did a man who lost everything in Rome's civil wars become the ancient world's greatest real estate mogul? And what can his strategies teach modern investors about building generational wealth?
In this episode, I dive deep into Crassus's playbook:
How he turned political...The $15 Billion Marriage: How One Family Built a 345-Year Real Estate Dynasty
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What if one strategic decision in 1677 could create $15 billion in wealth that lasts 345 years?
In this episode, Arie tells the incredible story of the Grosvenor family - the British dynasty that survived the Great Fire of London, two World Wars, multiple market crashes, and Brexit while building one of the world's largest real estate empires.
It all started with Thomas Grosvenor's marriage to 12-year-old Mary Davies and her "worthless" 500 acres of London swampland. While everyone else saw marshes, Thomas saw the future of London. His decision to hold instead...
Letters from Gaul: Caesar’s Laws: Strategic Discipline at the Edge of Chaos
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“In war, events of importance are the result of trivial causes.”– Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico
When Julius Caesar set out to conquer Gaul, he didn’t rely on raw force or divine luck. He relied on systems. Strategy. Discipline. And an unshakable understanding of how empires are actually built — and lost.
In this first installment of Letters from Gaul, I explore five timeless laws Caesar deployed in the field — and how they map directly to investing, operations, and capital stewardship in today’s world.
We talk:<...
Conviction Without Certainty: How Great Investors Move in Uncertain Times
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What’s the difference between conviction and certainty?
In this episode, Arie van Gemeren — fund manager, real estate investor, and author of Timeless Wealth — unpacks one of the most overlooked distinctions in investing and decision-making.
Certainty can blind you. It locks you into narratives, filters out risk, and creates fragility.
But conviction? Conviction is different. It’s not about being right — it’s about building a process you trust, having the courage to act, and the humility to adapt when the facts change.
Drawing on insights fro...
Empire, Decay, and the Modern Investor’s Dilemma
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What do Rome, Spain, and Britain have in common?
They each ruled the world — and then quietly collapsed from within.
In this episode of The Timeless Investor Show, we explore how three of history’s greatest empires fell — not from outside invasion, but from internal decay. From currency debasement and over-financialization to the erosion of civic discipline, the warning signs were always there.
More importantly, we connect these patterns to the modern world — and what today’s investors can learn about resilience, scarcity, and how to protect wealth whe...
From Battlefield to Bond Market - Rothschild’s Rise and the Birth of Modern Finance
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What if the most decisive moment of the Napoleonic Wars didn’t happen on the battlefield — but on the bond desk?
In this episode of The Timeless Investor Show, Arie van Gemeren unpacks one of the most legendary (and controversial) financial trades in history: Nathan Rothschild’s alleged bond market coup during the Battle of Waterloo.
We explore:
• How the Rothschild network outpaced governments with faster intelligence
• Why market psychology is the ultimate weapon in financial warfare
• How this moment marked the shift from militar...
Basil the Bulgar-Slayer - How Relentless Discipline Builds Enduring Empires
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In a world obsessed with charisma and speed, Basil II built something different.
Today, we explore the life and lessons of one of the most overlooked yet ruthless emperors in history — Basil the Bulgar-Slayer.
Through 40 years of relentless discipline, strategic patience, and brutal clarity of mission, Basil crushed his empire’s greatest enemy and left Byzantium stronger than it had been in 400 years.
What does his story teach us about investing, leadership, and building real wealth today?
Join me as we dig into the timeless prin...
Think Like Munger - Systems, Inversion, and the Lollapalooza Effect
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Charlie Munger wasn’t just Warren Buffett’s right-hand man — he was a builder of mental systems, a student of history, and a principled real estate investor.
In this episode of The Timeless Investor Show, we explore the timeless lessons Munger left behind:
The power of multidisciplinary thinkingThe “mental models” Munger used to filter realityThe principle of inversion — and why solving for failure mattersHow the Lollapalooza Effect explains bubbles, pandemics, and real estate maniaWhy Munger loved real estate — and how he approached investing in itWe also talk about how modern too...
Marcus Aurelius - The Inner Game of Investing
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In this episode of The Timeless Investor Show, we explore the life and writings of Marcus Aurelius — Roman emperor, philosopher, and author of Meditations.
What does a 2,000-year-old Stoic emperor have to do with modern investing, entrepreneurship, or leadership? A lot.
We talk about:
Why emotional discipline matters more than intelligenceThe difference between control and acceptance in businessHow Stoic thought prepares you for market cycles, setbacks, and successAnd why some of the greatest investors in history turn to Meditations as a mental anchorThis episode is for an...
Cyrus the Great - Timeless Lessons on Power, Systems, and Legacy
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In the opening episode of The Timeless Investor Show, we explore the life and leadership of Cyrus the Great — a man whose influence echoes across centuries.
Cyrus wasn’t remembered just for what he conquered. He was remembered for how he ruled — with trust, strategic systems, and a long-term vision that built the foundations of an empire that outlived him.
In this episode, we dive into:
How Cyrus built trust instead of ruling by fearHow he created enduring systems rather than personal empiresWhat modern real estate investors, builders, and en...
