For months, the hosts of Onward — Ben Miller, Fundrise CEO, and Cardiff Garcia — have discussed the many ways that the current, high inflation environment can and will impact the broader economy and the behavior of investors. In this newest episode, Ben brings a brand new idea to the table: a specific theory outlining how our financial system is on the verge of real crisis and potential collapse. And yet… Ben remains optimistic — more optimistic, in fact, than he’s felt in a long time.

Join us to hear Ben explain how a preponderance of “shadow banks” and the practice of using loans as the assets for generating new loans has created a snarled chain of lending. Now that interest rates have exploded to new highs, what happens when one loan in the chain comes due, and refinancing is impossible? Have regulations from 2008 set the stage for a different version of a 2008-esque financial breakdown? And what exactly do we mean when we say, “Turtles all the way down”?

Other ideas in this episode include:

  • Why it’s simply not possible that “everyone’s hedged.”
  • The likely winners and losers if and when this crisis unfolds.
  • How this process could lead to “creative destruction” as certain sectors become untenable and others take their place.
  • Ben’s definition of a true liquidity crisis… and why the economy is likely to see one.
  • A review of what we can learn from the real estate crisis of 1990, and why it was worse in some ways than 2008.

And finally, how Fundrise has been designed to excel precisely during a crisis like the one Ben forecasts, which he calls “a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

Join us for this latest episode of Onward anywhere that you listen to podcasts.