John Owens CFP®, EA, ECA, CPWA® and Ed Zolotarev CPA, MST, CFP® fill in for AJ and Shane on this milestone 150th episode of The Liquidity Event.

FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation) is finally figuring out what to do about your outstanding Klarna loans. We discuss how “buy now, pay later” services might soon impact your credit score.

TLDR: It probably isn’t the best idea to finance your DoorDash order over 4 months.

Plus, alternative investments are getting a lot of attention right now. Why are private equity firms suddenly sliding into your DMs? We examine the dry IPO market as one of the root causes.

Then a Reddit question: how many kids should you have from a financial perspective?

Finally, our biggest takeaways from the first half of 2025.

Key Timestamps:

• (6:25) FICO's buy now, pay later integration rollout

• (9:30) Why financing experiences is financial quicksand

• (12:20) Ed's Affirm baby monitor financing experiment

• (15:56) Alternative investments moving down market

• (19:20) Why the IPO drought is forcing PE firms to get creative

• (24:10) Reddit question: How many kids should you have?

• (29:25) First half of 2025 takeaways

🔔 Subscribe to The Liquidity Event on YouTube: YouTube Channel
🌐 Learn more about Brooklyn FI financial planning: brooklynfi.com
✍️ Leave us a voicemail question for a future episode: memo.fm/theliquidityevent
📱 Follow Brooklyn FI:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brooklyn-fi/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklyn_f.i/

Hear your Liquidity Event host, Ally Jane Ayers, share expert insights on budgeting, investing, and managing money on the Hello Prenup Podcast with Julia Rodgers, Esq.

AJ discusses how to take control of your personal finances, talking money in a relationship, and why a prenup is an important part of financial wellness.

For the video recording, check out the Hello Prenup podcast on YouTube.

Key Moments:

• 01:51 Critiquing Traditional Finance
• 06:51 Importance of Prenups
• 09:33 Starting Money Conversations w/ Partner
• 12:52 Quarterly Money Dates & Goal Planning
• 16:47 Student Debt Conversation
• 20:25 Prenups in Practice
• 30:29 Budgeting & 50/30/20 Rule
• 37:22 Inheritance Conversations
• 44:10 Teaching Kids about Money

While our team is on a quick break, tune in as our co-founder Shane Mason joins the always entertaining Accounting High podcast to talk about the journey of building BKFi.

Shane shares insights on BKFi’s team structure and remote work and how we have built a company culture that’s ALWAYS focused on how to best serve our clients. He also discusses his and AJ Ayers’ new Gemifi software for equity compensation and how they have leveraged marketing partnerships to drive growth.

Check out the Accounting High podcast on YouTube.

Key Moments:

00:28 Welcome Back Shane and BrooklynFI

09:59 Team Structure and Remote Work

13:04 Client Services and Financial Planning

22:28 The Liquidity Event Podcast

25:36 New Ventures: Gemify Software

34:50 BrooklynFI's Continued Success

35:30 Marketing Strategies and Partnerships

40:26 Investment Strategies and Market Insights

46:41 Final Thoughts and Advice

In this episode, AJ and Shane break down why every VC-backed IPO in the past 12 months has been a “down round” and what that means for your equity. Then they tackle a juicy Reddit question from a 32-year-old tech worker vesting $400,000 per month (!) who's considering walking away from $5 million in future equity.

Key Timestamps:

(0:00) Introductions and summer traipsing vs. gallivanting exploration

(4:40) IPO “down rounds” explained

(8:45) The economics behind down rounds: cheap COVID money meets high interest rates

(12:30) Circle and Chime IPO examples - companies going public at lower valuations

(15:45) Why tender offers might be your best bet in this market

(17:45) Reddit question: "Is $10 million enough to retire on?"

(21:00) The $400K per month dilemma - stay for more money or quit while ahead?

(26:30) Team Quit vs. Team Stay - Opposing views on leaving $5 million on the table

(29:30) What being really rich buys you (spoiler: private jets)

The Debate: AJ argues for quitting: Take the money, buy the house, live the good life before kids arrive. Shane argues for staying: You're making $3,000 per hour. Don't walk away from generational wealth.

Who's right? Let us know in the comments.

🔔 Subscribe to The Liquidity Event on YouTube: YouTube Channel

🌐 Learn more about Brooklyn FI financial planning: brooklynfi.com

✍️ Leave us a voicemail question for a future episode: memo.fm/theliquidityevent

📱 Follow Brooklyn FI:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brooklyn-fi/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklyn_f.i/

In this episode of The Liquidity Event, hosts Shane Mason (reporting from Ireland! ) and AJ Ayers discuss the showdown between President Trump and Harvard and some of the current cash challenges felt by universities, even those with massive endowments.

They also talk through the IPO market ecosystem and which factors may be keeping it frozen.

Key Takeaways:

(0:00) Introductions and AJ's Broadway theater review

(4:18) Shane reports from Ireland, scotch eggs & shoutout to Rubin

(6:07) Trump vs Harvard - theories on the real motivation

(12:17) College endowments cash crunch - Harvard's $86B problem

(14:28) Endowment size reality check and college reunion prep

(18:33) Should we tax endowments like billionaires?

(21:05) Meet the portfolio pruner - VCs' new cleanup crew

(26:28) The valuation baggage problem and down rounds

(28:26) Secondary sales surge as IPO market stays frozen

(31:00) Sequoia's "patient capital" and wealth inequality connection

🔔 Subscribe to The Liquidity Event on YouTube: YouTube Channel

🌐 Learn more about Brooklyn FI financial planning: www.brooklynfi.com

✍️ Leave us a voicemail question for a future episode: memo.fm/theliquidityevent

📱 Follow Brooklyn FI:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brooklyn-fi/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklyn_f.i/

In this episode of The Liquidity Event, AJ Ayers hosts two Chief Investment Officers, Peter Lazaroff CFA, CFP® from Plancorp and Rubin Miller CFA from Peltoma Capital Partners, for a chat on cash management strategies, investment philosophies, and calling BS on industry trends.

Key Timestamps:

(0:00) Introductions and background

(2:48) Career paths in investment management

(12:43) Cash management strategies in today's high-interest environment

(13:57) Risk-free rates and building portfolios around them

(30:00) Tax loss harvesting: overhyped or valuable strategy?

(31:13) Direct indexing and SMAs - worth it or not?

(37:01) Dumbest purchases - from $13k couches to levered ETFs

🔔 Subscribe to The Liquidity Event on YouTube: YouTube Channel

🌐 Learn more about Brooklyn FI financial planning: brooklynfi.com

✍️ Leave us a voicemail question for a future episode: memo.fm/theliquidityevent

📱 Follow Brooklyn FI:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brooklyn-fi/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklyn_f.i/

Welcome to Episode 146 of The Liquidity Event!

This week AJ and Shane talk FinTech corporate espionage and then focus on the proposed GOP tax plan.

To wrap things up, they address a listener's concern about preparing for a "coming economic storm," offering insights on why fear-based financial decisions are rarely the best approach.

Key Takeaways:

(00:00) - Intro & What's Shane doing in AJ's house?

(01:52) - Spies Are Everywhere: The Cutthroat FinTech Industry

(04:54) - Remote Work & Cybersecurity: The New Frontier of Corporate Risk

(06:07) - Non-Competes: Enforceable or Not?

(06:33) - Decoding the New House GOP Tax Plan (Draft Details!)

(06:53) - AJ's Favorite: 529 Plan Expansions for Certifications!

(08:14) - Shane's Take: Standard Deductions, AMT, and the SALT Cap Saga Continues

(12:23) - No Tax on Tips? Or Overtime? The Complications!

(15:14) - Radical Tax Idea Corner: Capital Gains & Lifetime Exclusions

(18:58) - Estate Tax Exclusion: Permanent and Higher?

(19:48) - Listener Question: Preparing for the "Coming Economic Storm"

(21:26) - AJ's Hot Take: Don't Make Decisions Based on Fear!

(25:01) - Outro

🔔 Subscribe to The Liquidity Event on YouTube: YouTube Channel

🌐 Learn more about Brooklyn FI financial planning: brooklynfi.com

✍️ Leave us a voicemail question for a future episode:memo.fm/theliquidityevent

📱 Follow Brooklyn FI:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brooklyn-fi/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brooklyn_f.i/

Welcome to Episode 145 of The Liquidity Event! This week, AJ and Shane tackle some big topics: Are individual investors smarter than the "smart money" hedge funds? Why are CEOs really heading for the exits at record rates (and what's the deal with that vasectomy shirt story)? Plus, we unravel the frustrating Catch-22 of credit card fees for businesses and consumers.

Tune in for our signature blend of financial insights and (mostly) educational humor!

Key Timestamps:

(0:00) - Intro & Shane's Renovation Woes

(01:39) - Market Update: Pros Sold, Individuals Pounced – Who Was Right?

(06:30) - Hedge Fund Reality Check: S&P 500 vs. "Expert" Performance

(09:00) - The "Tiger in the Grass": Why We're Biased Towards Action in Markets

(14:50) - AJ's Big News: Announcing Her Book "Creative Money"!

(17:10) - Tipping Fatigue: Are We All Fed Up?

(21:40) - The Real Reasons Tipping Culture is Out of Control

(24:45) - The Great Credit Card Rip-Off: Fees, Oligopolies & The Catch-22 for Businesses

(28:20) - CEO Exodus: Why Leaders Are Quitting in Droves

(29:05) - Peak Ambiguity: AI, DEI & The Hilarious "Vasectomy Shirt" Anecdote

(30:00) - Burnout is the New Black: The Serious Side of CEO Turnover

Connect with us:

Email your financial problems or questions: liquidityevent@brooklynfi.com

Leave us a voicemail (we might play it on the air!): memo.fm/liquidityevent

Don't forget to LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a REVIEW if you enjoy the show! Your support helps us expose more financial nonsense.

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