Episode summary
Christina Rice discusses private markets and how curiosity and preparation can build confidence.
Key takeaways
- The discussion covers venture capital and private equity.
- Emerging asset classes offer another lens on private markets.
- Curiosity and preparation can help build confidence.
About this episode
In this episode of Rocking Finance, RTSWS CEO Ashley Leftwich speaks with Christina Rice, Founder & CEO of Athos Private Wealth, for a candid conversation about navigating private markets. Christina explains how women can lead in venture capital, private equity, and emerging asset classes. She also discusses how curiosity and preparation create confidence.
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Transcript
Transcript supplied by Riverside; it may contain transcription errors.
speaker-0: Welcome to Rocking Finance, the Rock the Street Wall Street Podcast. Real stories, real access, real path into finance. Join us for candid high-impact conversations with industry leaders sharing the insights, experiences, career pivots, and journeys that can help young women advance through the financial industry with great confidence. Rock the Street Wall Street equips high school and university students, especially young women, by bringing the and STEM to life through financial and investment fundamentals. We provide direct industry access and guidance supporting students and young professionals on their journeys from classrooms to careers while expanding participation in the capital markets. Through cohort-based learning, mentorship, and individual career connection, we help students build confidence, capabilities, and networks that open doors. Our goal is clear: expand participation in the capital markets and strengthen the future of finance one cohort at a time. Today I'm your host, Ashley Leftwich, CEO of Rockmistry Wall Street, that lets rock finance. Christina Rice, thank you for joining us. We can share some of your background as your career path hasn't been a straight line. You took an interesting path to build success in the private wealth space. How did you navigate into private markets?
speaker-1: Thank you, Ashley, for having me. Yes, my career path has been pretty unconventional, but every pivot sort of contributed to the essential skills I use every day right now in private wealth. Growing up, I was passionate about writing and published a novel at 15 in China, which eventually led me, thank you, to study and practice journalism. So journalism, I interviewed top pension funds and endowment CIOs. and learned directly from people who allocated billions of dollars. And that opened the door for finance. With that experience, I started to work in hedge funds and private equity and eventually a Solvent Wealth fund before I joined Athos. I realized that I wanted to make investment due diligence and creative problem solving my career. And that's exactly what I do at Ethos right now. We are a multifamily office. And I manage 13 funded funds across venture capital, private equity, private credit, and crypto. And I have invested 70 managers at this point. I lead our efforts in sourcing, diligence, and operations. And I'm proud that we are a very unique type of private wealth manager that we open doors for people to invest in alternative assets in the private market. All those experiences have contributed to the essential skills I use every day.
speaker-0: I'm so interested to hear more about the problem solving piece, though before that, will you tell us a bit more about your novel?
speaker-1: Yeah, of course. So I wrote this when I was fifteen at the time during my teenage years. And during that time I was more of a quiet girl. I kept everything to myself. And the way that I really communicate with the world is by keeping a journal. So I wrote about this girl who was quiet and who didn't really have that many friends. And she was, you know, kinda loner until one day she found a guy that she falls in love with. however, this is not a cliche romance novel. She fell in love with the guy and she thought that became her new purpose and new world. And she started dreaming about a happy, happily ever after ending with this person. However, she was, you know, disappointed eventually. She discovered that this guy has lied to her and cheated on her. And then when she reflects to her on her life, she realized that she didn't need him. So it's a short novel, and there is a lot of, I think. you know, description and writings about her internal like emotional journey. But at the end I think it's a powerful story about how, you know, we all have those teenage dreams, but even if we are disappointed by them, we can still pick ourselves up and go on and keep dreaming.
speaker-0: Absolutely. Be a self-made woman, empower ourselves to accomplish anything that we want to do, right? That's so interesting and absolutely amazing that you were encouraged to write a novel at age 15. Thank you.
speaker-1: Yeah, I don't think they know that I was fifteen when they called me back after, you know, I sent that in. So yeah, I think I actually got paid less because of that.
speaker-0: wow. You have mentioned and many of our students picture themselves, picture finances, banking, or the public markets specifically. So how would you explain what private markets means from venture capital and private equity to other alternative investments like real estate and crypto?
speaker-1: You're exactly right. I think when people hear about finance, they think about the stock market, banks and banks and private markets really is not, you know, everybody's radar. However, private market investing, I think, simply put, just include all the investments that's not traded on public exchanges. And that means, you know, investing things like an early stage startup before they go public. and that would be venture capital and real life simplified. Fun example of this would be what we see on Shark Tank, although there are a lot of you know more complicated deal making in the background. And it could also mean buying a profitable business and try to scale it and improve it, aka private equity. And it could also mean lending money through private loans instead of going through banks. and that is private credit. So these investments are harder to access because they're not traded on the public exchanges, like I mentioned before. And they're less liquid because it takes time for a private company and a startup to develop. And ethos we specializing, you know, help clients navigate and access this market because we believe private market investments really complement the public market investment. It helps you build a much more resilient and diversified portfolio, and that would be much stronger than just having public stocks and bounds alone.
speaker-0: Yeah, you've managed multiple funds across different strategies. So what what skills and mindset helped you step into such a complex space?
speaker-1: Yeah. I think reflecting on my journey, it's really a combination of adaptability, continuous learning, and a unique cross-disciplinary perspective. So I am an immigrant. I came to this country 16 years ago and have lived in Minnesota, New York City, Miami, and now Utah. Every new city I went to challenged me to have to quickly adapt to an unfamiliar environment. I think this is a skill that's directly related to working as an allocator in private markets because this land this landscape that I'm working in is always changing with new investment strategies and trends, emerging constantly. So being able to assess situation and pivot quickly is very invaluable. I have a bachelor's degree and two master degrees. One of the match master degrees was supposed to be. a PhD degree. I am not saying that you need all those degrees, but I think this really is the kind of mindset, you know, that we need to continue to learn as a market it always evolving. You can never stop learning. I worked for seven years before I go back to school to get my MBA because I realized that, you know, I am craving and hungry for new knowledges. And one thing I really love about my job is that I get to talk to brilliant managers all the time who can introduce me to unique investment strategies and philosophies. So I'm always learning new things. And as I mentioned before, you know, I my background is actually in journalism. And that actually taught me to ask insightful questions and to really listen and not just to what the investment managers are saying, but why and how they're saying it. This skill really helped me to discover what's behind the numbers and narratives. At the same time, I this communication skills really enables me to translate complex investment ideas into clear, accessible language to our clients and help them to make the investment decision that works for them.
speaker-0: You shared about your background and how you know you consider yourself a lifelong learner, how those different interests that you had really led to what what you now use within finance and how how moving to those different locations also builds into your background and how it's so so great within your role that you get to speak with people with different backgrounds. And my own math math background. really taught me not only to lean into data, but also the power of compounding and market trends and investment outcomes. In your work, how does the data shape the decision making in the private investing?
speaker-1: Yeah, data is super important in finance and also in private investing, particularly in the due diligence process. One example is that managers will always present a wealth of performance data and statistics, but the real value comes from interpreting those data critically, looking beyond the numbers to uncover the full story. For example, track record can tell you how a fund has performed in the past. But on their own, they don't tell you why. My job is to dig deeper. And for example, I look at a venture manager who may have a very strong return. And I have to ask: is this r a result of one extraordinary investment out of 50? Or does this reflect a repeatable ability to consistently identify extraordinary high pro high potential companies by breaking down this data and connecting it to the underlying drivers? we can assess whether managers' past success is likely to be sustainable in the future. So this way data becomes not more than just numbers. It becomes something that really helps us the foundation to make informed long-term investment.
speaker-0: I love that so much. So what misconceptions do you see about the private markets, especially for women considering careers in this field?
speaker-1: I think one common misconception is that there's little data in private market comparing to the public market. I think it is true that the private market have less quantitative data comparing to the public market. however, it doesn't mean that there's less information and insight that we can't work with. It just means that the data will look differently. For example, a startup, an early startup, may not have a long history of a revenue figure or EBITDA numbers. However, you can still assess the quality of this company by looking at more qualitative data. For example, the founder's background, the product's unique story, the mission and capability of the team and early market traction. So in private investing, I think the skill really lies in knowing what alternative information to look for and how to interpret it. Once you learn to kind of decipher those Now traditional data points, the picture becomes much clearer.
speaker-0: That's wonderfully helpful advice. And as as we've learned today, you had quite the unconventional path to your career. So some of our students always ask, what advice would you have for those who are may not have as clear or as traditional of a route into finance?
speaker-1: Yeah. When I was younger, I was passionate about writing, like I mentioned before, and I pursued journalism. And growing up in China, this was considered a very unpopular path because people believe that, you know, studying journalism may not get you jobs that would make very good money. But my mother gave me a really great advice. People who work in every profession can make money as long as you're the best at it. However, to be able to be the best at it, you have to love it. So I really took this to heart. I remembered to always do something that I love instead of just what people think would make money. I followed my prep passion. I discovered the skills that I gained, for example, like storytelling, critical thinking, really gave me a unique perspective in finance. So I don't just see numbers on a spreadsheet, I see stories, strategies, and opportunities that make sense on a deeper level. So my advice to the students would be that. Don't discourage if you don't fit into the traditional mode or see a clear path in finance. Lean into what excites you and build down your strengths. No matter your background, finance needs people who can see things differently and bring new perspective. So just trust your instincts, develop your abilities, and look for ways your unique background can add value. And that's usually where the great meaningful career starts.
speaker-0: I think that that passion absolutely leads to a meaningful career and just such a fruitful experience within within those careers as well. So looking ahead, where do you see the growth opportunities in private markets that today's students could prepare for?
speaker-1: I think private markets, like every other industry, are being rapidly shaped reshaped by artificial intelligence. And I see this as one of the most important growth areas for the future. In private markets, AI is already transforming how we source deals, conduct due diligence, analyze data, and monitor portfolios. And at the same time, AI itself creates attractive investment opportunities from companies building AI technology to those providing infrastructure, cybersecurity. and different applications that will empower its adoption. So for students, I think developing a working knowledge of AI tools and understanding how they can be applied in investing will be a crucial skill in the future.
speaker-0: Thank you so much for joining us, Christina. What's one action our students can take this year to start building confidence and additional credibility in the investment world?
speaker-1: First, I want to say by joining Rock the Strait Wall Street Career Center, they are already taking a meaningful first step. And I think they can learn directly from professionals with diverse perspectives, which is incredibly powerful. My advice is to build on this momentum, get involved in finance, or invest in clubs, join peer groups, follow market trends, follow read market news daily, and seek out internships and shuttling opportunities. These activities will not allow them, you know, to gain knowledge but also expand their network, which is really, really valuable in this industry. I think confidence comes from preparation and experience and credibility comes from showing up. So stay curious and build relationships and they would have a great foundation that way.
speaker-0: Wonderful. Thank you so much, Christina. Thank you for joining the conversation. Visit RockThreeWallstreet.com to learn more. Make sure to follow and join us for the next episode. Until next time, let's keep rocking finance.
