Tuesday, December 16th, 2025
Laramie, Wyoming
by Dan Denning
Well, I didn’t expect a Canadian software company to be the next big opportunity after oil and gas. Or really, because of oil and gas. Chris Mayer, the latest guest in our Private Briefing series and the fund manager at Woodlock House Family Capital, explains below.
Chris and I go way back. So when I knew I’d be in Baltimore for the week (last week) I asked if he’d come down to the library at 14W to catch up on camera. We talked about what went right, and not so right, in 2025. And we talked about what he’s excited about in 2026.
Underlying the whole conversation was one word: cash. What to do with it if you have it? Or how to find companies that are generating more of it. And how to pick managers that know how to invest it (or return it to shareholders through dividends and buybacks).
Thanks again for sending your questions in a head of time and enjoy the transcript (and the video) of our Private Briefing below.
Regards,
Dan
P.S. One small clarification. The ‘demise of Warren Buffett’ cover story I mention from Barron’s was not published in 2000. It was published on December 27th, 1999. The Dow made its then all-time high on January 14th, 2000. Fattened up with tech stocks, the Nasdaq composite didn’t make its all-time high until March 10th (many rusted on bears sold ‘old economy’ stocks and capitulated into the momentum trade of the day). The S&P made its own all-time high two weeks later on March 24th. And then commenced a miserable lost decade for investors.
TRANSCRIPT BEGINS HERE
Dan Denning: Well, hello everybody. Welcome back to Bonner Private Research. I’m Dan Denning, the research director at BPR. As you can see, we’re here in the hallowed halls of 14 West Mount Vernon, the famous library where my guest today has had many conversations with myself and with our founder, Bill Bonner. So Bill and I sat and went over our list of questions earlier today, and thank you to readers who sent questions in ahead of time, so I’ve incorporated some of those questions to ask Chris today. But for those of you who haven’t met him, please let me introduce Chris Mayer from Woodlock House Family Capital. Hello, Chris.
Chris Mayer: Hello, Dan. Good to be back on with you.
Dan Denning: Oh, good. Someone’s got the energy.
Chris Mayer: In person for once.
Dan Denning:Yeah, it’s been a while. The last few times we’ve talked, it’s been remote.
Chris Mayer: Virtual, yeah.
Dan Denning: I’m in Wyoming, you’re in Maryland. I know I said I wouldn’t do this, but I’m going to make you do it anyway. Can you give the very, very short background on your relationship with Bill Bonner and your current role as a fund manager?
Chris Mayer: Yeah, very short. So I was a reader of The Daily Reckoning way back when, and I remember I used to send Bill things. I was a freelancing at the time too, so I had articles published there. One time, Bill was like, this was around 2004, “You should meet Addison.” Addison was coming from Paris and we were just starting up Agora Financial, we were doing that whole thing, that’s where I got to meet you. So made the leap over to Agora and was writing newsletters up to about 2016 or so, and then I worked with Bill in his family office for a while. And then, we started Woodlock House, January 2019 is when it started.
Dan Denning: Right. Well, we’re going to talk about both the family office and how Woodlock House is doing, because those are what we’ve talked about before and we’re at the end of the year, so there’s obviously always a lot to talk about, but we want to talk about performance. And actually, I want to start with that, because I don’t believe these play a big role in your strategy, but for BPR readers, gold and silver, who have had spectacular years, gold up 60%, silver last I checked was up almost 100% for the year, the mining stocks have kind of reacted. You’d think these companies, their free cash flow is going to explode if these prices are much higher than the models at the start of the year. So just to start with, any comment on the performance of those investments, and any attraction to either the metals themselves or the mining stocks?