From investing his paper route money in term deposits when he was nine years old, to racing the two kilometres from one end of Collins Street to the other to submit a handwritten RBA bond tender, to running a market-beating income fund for more than 20 years, Yarra Capital Management’s Roy Keenan has seen it all in his 40 years in fixed income. It is this broad experience and love for fixed income that makes Keenan such an interesting person to talk to, particularly given the world as we find it today. There’s a new regime taking shape in the US, the promises of which will need to be funded by new paper, locally we have state governments in trouble (none more so than Victoria, where Keenan was at the coalface last time it was broke), whilst the energy transition and other major investment themes are creating opportunities. Making sense of it all is always the key, but when you have four decades of experience you have learnt when to use your head and when to pay attention to your gut. "I think that the head tells you to put the trade on. I think the gut is the warning signal that something doesn't feel right and therefore instead of taking that trade off quickly, you might just let it run a little bit longer to see how it will play out," he says. So, which themes are dominating Keenan’s head space and innards today? Be sure to listen to the podcast for insights on the world's biggest and most liquid markets, as well as some war stories from Keenan’s 40 years in the market.

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