Show Notes
Recently I sat down with Gary Stevenson: former trader, author of The Trading Game, and the man behind Gary's Economics — to ask the question that drives everything he does: how much is enough?
Gary grew up poor in East London, got expelled from school at 16, and went on to become one of the most profitable traders in Citibank's history — making $12 million for the bank at 22 years old, before he even knew what he was doing.
But the money didn't make him happy. It made him obsessive. Then isolated. Then depressed. In this episode of Last Meal, Gary opens up about the psychology of extreme wealth, the cost of ambition, and why he walked away from one of the most lucrative careers in finance to warn the world about growing economic inequality. We talk about his childhood in East London, what it felt like to earn bonuses one hundred times that of his friends, and tell no one — including his parents — of his newfound wealth. The year he spent cycling alone through Tokyo at night, set as a backdrop to his choice of Last Meal, and just happened to be my favourite in all of Japan too :).
We also go deep on the nature of obsession, whether ambition is a virtue or a madness, what Japan taught him about community and loneliness, and how he thinks about meaning now that his YouTube channel has become one of the biggest political platforms in Europe.
This is one of the most Candid conversations you'll see of the man behind the message, Gary Stevenson.
CHAPTER MARKERS 00:00 — Starting from nothing 08:15 — Gary's Transformation 14:10 — Wealth is Relative 19:45 — What The Money Couldn't Buy 25:59 -- Gary's LAST MEAL 29:15 — Why Japan is Like Nowhere Else 42:35 — Trapped, depressed, and threatened 54:10 — On Being Obsessive 1:01:30 — The Parable of the Talents 1:05:50 -- Last Word
Gary Stevenson | Gary's Economics | GarysEconomics | The Trading Game | wealth inequality | wealth tax | economic inequality UK | Citibank trader | inequality economist
Special Thanks to Mark Murphy, Artie Gallagher & The crew at The Old Fitz Hotel for allowing us to film this great episode!
If you're in Tokyo and want to test your tastebuds with Gary's choice of Last Meal, visit Kikanbo https://kikanbo.co.jp/
Follow Gary https://www.youtube.com/garyseconomics
Buy THE TRADING GAME https://amzn.to/4xr31NJ
Follow Tom instagram.com/djhookie
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