WINTER IS COMING
Why I moved from the suburbs of Houston to a farm in Maryland to prepare for what J.P. Morgan calls the coming “economic hurricane,” and what this means for your portfolio…
Dear Friend,
You haven’t heard from me in several months, but today I'm getting back in touch to share a deeply personal message.
It’s not something I ever expected to write.
But desperate times call for desperate measures, and here we are.
In short: I believe a financial and economic crisis of unprecedented magnitude is about to send shockwaves rippling through the global markets.
And if you’re not prepared… your wealth and way of life could be decimated by what’s barreling down upon us.
In this short letter I’ll explain how I’m personally preparing for this event… and why I recently moved from the suburbs of Houston to a farm in Maryland.
Plus I’ll detail what I believe you should be doing in order to protect your wealth and your loved ones before it’s too late.
Nothing you’ve ever done, or imagined doing, is more important.
And for those who bury their heads in the sand, it could cost them everything they’ve worked so hard to build over the last decade.
It’s already started…
THE CANARY IN THE COALMINE
Until just a few weeks ago, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was one of the richest people on the planet, with an estimated net worth of $16 billion.
He built this fortune through a crypto empire centered around FTX, the world’s second largest crypto exchange.
Along the way, he amassed huge political influence by becoming the second largest donor to the Democratic Party, behind George Soros.
He hobnobbed with elite figures on Wall Street and A-list celebrities, drawing 8-figure investments from some of the world’s most respected fund managers, including Sequoia Capital.
SBF even convinced Tom Brady to invest a substantial portion of his net worth into his crypto ventures, including becoming an aggressive promoter of the FTX exchange.
On Monday, November 7th, FTX was considered one of the safest and most conservatively managed crypto exchanges on the planet, valued at $32 billion.
Just four days later, on November 11th, it filed for bankruptcy, in one of the fastest and most spectacular wealth implosions of all time.
Allegedly, instead of segregating customer deposits, FTX funneled billions of dollars of customer deposits into a subsidiary trading arm, Alameda Research.
SBF hired his former girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, as the CEO and head of trading for Alameda Research.
In a now-viral video, Ellison describes her trading strategy as involving “very little math… a lot of, like, elementary school math.”
What could possibly go wrong? Turns out, a lot.
When news broke that FTX customer deposits were at risk, traders rushed to withdraw their money. But of course, the money wasn’t there.
FTX stopped processing withdrawals.
Overnight, FTX clients became unsecured creditors to an insolvent trading exchange.
FTX customers will now have to duke it out with other creditors in bankruptcy proceedings – the problem is, that line stretches around the block.
In subsequent FTX bankruptcy filing documents, the company claims its estimated liabilities could be as high as $50 billion.
To put that in context, Enron had $23 billion in liabilities when it filed for bankruptcy in 2001.
And it took Enron decades to accumulate that amount of debt. FTX is just three years old, and yet, it threatens to erase twice the amount of wealth as one of the largest frauds of all time.
Don’t take my word for it.
John Ray III recently replaced SBF to oversee the FTX bankruptcy. He also managed the Enron bankruptcy proceedings.
After just a few days on the job reviewing the FTX books, he claims he has never before witnessed:
“Such a complete failure of corporate controls and such a complete absence of trustworthy financial information as occurred here.”
And it was all so predictable…
You see, in the wake of the 2008 meltdown, central banks and lawmakers thought they could eliminate the risk of another financial crisis.
They beefed up the banking regulations and cracked down on the reckless lending standards that inflated the housing bubble.
But this merely rearranged the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Policymakers never addressed the real source of our boom/bust economy: reckless credit creation.
In the wake of the Global Financial Crisis, the Federal Reserve created nearly $8 trillion in new credit, while keeping interest rates pinned at zero.
When you create that much money from thin air, it goes somewhere…
A lot of this money went into cryptos.
At its zenith, $3 trillion of paper wealth was stored in cryptocurrencies.
But as global central banks began taking the easy money away in 2022, that paper wealth began evaporating.
Now it’s true that the crypto market meltdown isn’t a repeat of the 2008 Financial Crisis. But it’s merely a marker, a signpost that central banks have once again inflated a massive asset bubble that’s now deep into the unraveling stage.
FTX was the first major casualty of today’s bursting credit bubble, but it won’t be the last.
As I warned readers last year:
“We’re living through the greatest financial mania of all time.
My bet is simple: trillions of dollars in paper wealth will evaporate across stocks, bonds, real estate and cryptocurrencies over the next 18 to 24 months.
My goal - chronicle the madness, while equipping you with actionable investment ideas for navigating the financial event of our lifetime.”
- Ross Report, September 8, 2021
With over $2 trillion wiped out from crypto and a record $36+ trillion erased from global financial markets this year, it’s safe to say this process is well underway.
Hopefully, I’ve helped subscribers navigate the extreme risk in today’s market, including prescient warnings like this, just before the massive wealth wipeout in 2022:
“Make no mistake, this ain’t your garden variety ‘healthy correction’. This is the stuff of an imploding asset bubble.
We’re feeling the first tremors now. But if history is any guide, this is a prelude to the “big one” coming for the blue chips and the broader stock market.”
- Ross Report, December 6, 2021
I’m not the only one calling for a coming financial calamity.
The head of J.P. Morgan, Jamie Dimon, warned about an upcoming “economic hurricane” just a few months ago:
And that brings us to today…
THE FIRST DOMINO HAS FALLEN
The chain of credit collapse has been kicked off.
And yet, investors have sent stocks soaring on the supposedly “good news” that inflation is peaking.
On November 10th, the S&P 500 posted its 3rd largest daily increase in history on news that inflation “only” rose by 7.7% per year in October.
But as legendary investor and billionaire Carl Icahn recently warned investors in a CNBC interview…
“I am still very, quite bearish on what is going to happen.
A rally like this is of course very dramatic to say the least... but I still think we are in a bear market… I don’t think the inflation is over…
I lived through the 70s. It took years and years and years to get it over with. You can’t wave a magic wand to get inflation over with.”
The smart money in this market, including billionaires like Carl Icahn and Jamie Dimon, understand the lessons from the great Austrian economist Ludwig Von Mises, who explained over a century ago:
"There is no means of avoiding the final collapse of a boom brought about by credit expansion.
The alternative is only whether the crisis should come sooner as the result of voluntary abandonment of further credit expansion, or later as a final and total catastrophe of the currency system involved."
The Fed is stuck between a rock and a hard place: either allow inflation to run rampant and destroy the faith and credit of the U.S. currency, or face a devastating credit collapse.
There is no “good” outcome here. And that presents a major challenge for investors going forward.
The recent bout of enthusiasm in financial markets about the prospect of the so-called “Fed Pivot” back to more cheap money will soon fade away, as the market comes to grips with this reality.
An economic disaster was “baked into the cake” through the last decade of reckless credit expansion, and it’s only a question of how and when it all unravels.
What you do next – whether you survive this coming crash – I believe that depends on whether or not you listen to one man…
MEET PORTER
There’s no one better to help you navigate this market than my good friend and mentor, Porter Stansberry.
I first met Porter in 2017 after joining his analyst team at Stansberry Research — the company he founded from a kitchen table and a borrowed laptop in 1999.
From scratch, he grew the business into a financial publishing powerhouse, with over a million subscribers worldwide.
Needless to say, this level of success doesn’t happen without adding a lot of value to your readers over the years.
These include gains of over 250% on Paypal (PYPL), 950% on Shopify (SHOP) and over 4,900% on Regeneron (REGN).
Perhaps most famously, Porter recommended Amazon for $2 per share in the 1990s, back when Wall Street believed it was “just a bookstore”:
Porter also alerted his subscribers about the coming 2008 Financial Crisis a full nine months in advance, when he published the following warning from his flagship publication, Stansberry Investment Advisory, in December 2007:
“With another 2 million homeowners facing higher interest resets on their adjustable-rate mortgages, it seems that the total number of defaults is going to keep climbing.
And that's trouble… I now believe our country’s mortgage crisis will spill over into the general economy.”
In the same issue, he went on to say…
“This is a time to be extremely cautious with your own finances. I believe the S&P 500 will fall this year, by more than 10%.
Most stocks will probably decline this year. Thus, simply holding cash isn't a bad strategy right now – your cash will probably outperform your stocks in 2008.
Also, I think you should consider hedging your portfolio with some short sales – even if you've never done so before.”
By March of 2008, many Wall Street analysts and famous TV pundits were advising the public that the worst of the housing crisis had passed. But Stansberry Investment Advisory readers avoided that trap, and were once again warned of what was to come:
“With the S&P 500 down 24% from its peak to its recent trough, we are in the midst of a real bear market.
My belief today is stock prices – on average – are going to go lower. Perhaps even much, much lower… I don’t think we’ve seen the ‘throw in the towel’ moment.”
Countless retirement accounts were likely saved from these prescient warnings.
And that’s why I’m writing to you today…
Earlier this year, I learned that Porter was coming out of retirement to launch a new financial research company — Porter & Co.
I’m convinced that, just like he did with Stansberry Research, Porter & Co will produce some of the best financial research in the industry.
That’s why I dropped everything and moved from the suburbs of Houston, Texas out to Stevenson, Maryland to join the ranks.
This was a giant bet… it meant leaving behind my hometown filled with friends, family, and a great job with people I respected and liked.
But that should tell you how excited I am about this opportunity.
I now get to work in a converted hayloft tractor barn on Porter’s ranch, with some of the smartest people in finance.
And if you enjoyed the research I produced at the Ross Report, you can now look forward to even better content from Porter & Co.
That’s because I now get to draw upon Porter’s growing team of rock star analysts, plus an incredible rolodex of contacts to deliver insights that you simply can’t find anywhere else.
Last month, Porter put me into contact with Dave Lashmet — a biotech savant with one of the best track records in the business.
Dave gave us the inside scoop on a revolutionary new weight loss drug that could solve the $600 billion obesity epidemic with a once-daily pill.
This company already owns one of the world’s most profitable portfolios of pharmaceuticals…
But this revolutionary new drug could make it ten times bigger and ten times more profitable.
The stock is already up 20% since we published the recommendation to our subscribers on October 28, more than doubling the returns in the S&P 500. And we think this outperformance is just the beginning.
(In just a moment I’ll tell you how to get the name of that company, along with several other equally exciting opportunities).
It’s these kinds of ideas that explain how Porter built one of the most successful research publications in the world…
His Hershey recommendation is another example.
Despite his grave warnings about the coming financial panic that would strike in the Fall of 2008, Porter pounded the table on Hershey as his “Best No Risk Opportunity Ever.”
He analyzed the company through the lens of capital efficiency, which is our key focus at Porter & Co when making stock selections.
In simple terms, capital efficiency describes how well a company transforms profitability into shareholder returns.
This is one of the least understood, but most important parts of Warren Buffett’s investment framework, as Porter explained in his Hershey recommendation in 2007…
“The importance of corporate capital efficiency – is the key to understanding Warren Buffett's success as an investor… I have come to believe evaluating capital efficiency gives us a permanent edge in the market, as almost everyone else ignores this crucial variable... Few people even understand the concept.”
Since his November 2007 recommendation, Hershey has turned an original $100,000 investment into an $829,000 windfall. That’s double the returns of the same investment in the S&P 500, which grew to just $356,000 over the same time period:
Best of all, as the chart above shows, Hershey massively outperformed the S&P 500 while taking less risk along the way.
In other words, you didn’t need to concern yourself with subprime mortgages or even the collapse of the financial system.
You simply needed to follow Porter’s advice to buy and hold Hershey, and you could have slept through 2008, and went on to double the returns of the broader stock market while taking less risk.
Last week, we wrote about a Hershey-like opportunity in another dominant consumer franchise with world-class capital efficiency.
Over the last 18 years since going public, this company has crushed the stock market, producing a 24% compounded return.
The reason traces back to its incredible capital efficiency, including an average 31% return on assets and 79% return on invested capital. And today, it trades near the lowest valuation of the last decade.
The set-up is virtually identical to Porter’s Hershey recommendation in 2007, but with even more upside. We just made the case for how this company can produce annualized returns of 20% over the next decade, regardless of what happens in the economy or financial markets in the short-term.
That’s our mission at Porter & Co. — delivering you world-class investment ideas designed for beating the market – in any environment – while letting you sleep well at night.
YOUR INVITATION
As a loyal Ross Report reader, I have organized a special opportunity for you – it’s the chance to try out Porter & Co. risk-free for the next 30 days.
You see, I truly believe this is where YOU need to be if you want to survive the coming market collapse, but I don’t expect you to just take my word for it.
That’s why, when you click here, you’ll be taken to a secure, encrypted web-page where you can sign up for THE BIG SECRET ON WALL STREET.
This is Porter & Co’s flagship financial advisory service, personally written by Porter Stansberry.
As a member you will get instant access to several exclusive bonus reports we’ve put together for you, including:
BONUS REPORT #1: THE GODS OF GAS
Inside you’ll discover the American company that is disrupting the global energy markets and has the potential to become one of the world’s most important energy firms.
Porter says this could be one of the best discoveries he’s ever made, and believes it could potentially produce 10-fold returns for people who get in now.
BONUS REPORT #2: THE NEXT LNG GIANT
This company could become one of the most valuable energy infrastructure facilities in the world.
It has a unique business model designed solely to serve international markets for energy.
Backed by billionaire investors and top Wall Street funds, Porter believes this company will be worth at least $100 billion in ten years, 50x what it is worth right now.
BONUS REPORT #3: ENERGY ROYALTIES
Discover the unique ENERGY ROYALTIES firm that is safe from the volatile nature of the energy sector and has paid out $2.2 in dividends over the last 12 months, or a yield of nearly 7%.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg, though, as you’ll also get:
BI-WEEKLY INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS
Every other week, on Friday afternoon, THE BIG SECRET ON WALL STREET will reveal the most important (yet often hidden or overlooked) opportunities in the markets…
That’s 24 new issues per year… each of which will explore a new investment opportunity or trend in exacting, exhaustive detail.
I’m talking about research reports & investment ideas you simply cannot get anywhere at any price.
In fact, outside of research teams inside hedge funds, banks, and private equity firms there’s no one producing research like this.
THE BIG SECRET LIBRARY
In addition to your research report every other week (24 per year), you will have access to our entire backlog of THE BIG SECRET ON WALL STREET.
Each issue has a investment idea I’m willing to bet you’ve never seen anywhere else – including:
THE GOLDMAN SACHS OF WHITE TRASH
THE SECRET BEHIND T. BOONE’S FORTUNE
GRAB A BUCKET: IT’S ABOUT TO RAIN GOLD
THE END OF AMERICA
And many more.
THE BIG SECRET PORTFOLIO
Each recommendation will be logged and tracked in our model portfolio. You’ll also receive timely updates and alerts on each position.
A PRIVATE INVITATION TO PORTER’S FARM
Every year Porter will host a private, members-only conference at his farm in Baltimore County.
At this event you’ll not only meet Porter and me, you’ll also connect with a selection of hand-picked experts who’ll be giving private presentations.
Food, drink, and entertainment will also all be paid for.
And if you can’t attend in person, don’t worry, you’ll get a digital access pass so you can attend from anywhere in the world.
Plus, you’ll get recordings of the entire event so you can watch the speakers and presentations in your own time.
If we were to charge for this, it would cost at least $5,000 to attend.
But it’s free to you.
All this (and more) is waiting for you inside THE BIG SECRET ON WALL STREET and right now I’m giving you a 30% discount.
Typically, membership to THE BIG SECRET will be $1,425 per year, but as a special offer to Ross Report readers you can join for only $1,000.
That’s a savings of more than $400.
And works out to a paltry $41 per bi-weekly issue, an absolute steal given that each of our recommendations could potentially deliver 10-fold returns.
Not to mention the bonuses you’re getting, which are easily valued at $5,000…
TEST-DRIVE PORTER & CO TODAY
Remember, we’re only asking you to “test-drive” our research before you make your final decision.
Click here now, secure your spot, then take a full 30 days to check out our work with no obligation.
If at any point you decide THE BIG SECRET isn’t for you, just drop the team an email and we’ll promptly issue you a full refund.
To take advantage of this special Ross Report readers offer, simply click here now.
Or, if you prefer, you can call the offices to speak with the team.
All the details are listed on the next page, so go ahead and click the link now while this offer is still available.
I sincerely believe joining Porter & Co. is the best way for you to prepare for, survive, and even profit during the coming economic collapse.
I’ve never been more excited than I am working with Porter, and I hope you join me on this journey.
Click here now to test-drive our research risk-free for the next 30-days.
I look forward to helping you preserve wealth and prosper in the turbulent times ahead, backed up by a team of world-class experts and a true legend in the financial publishing industry.
I hope you’ll join us.
Thank you,
Ross Hendricks