William Heard is the founder and CIO of Heard Capital, a Chicago-based hedge fund firm that he founded when he was in his 20s, and where he is distinguished by a high conviction concentrated investment style. He was recently named one of Fortune’s 40 under 40 in the finance sector.

Our conversation looks back to William’s entry into finance, what sparked his fascination with markets and his early training within a multi-strategy hedge fund firm. A self-described introvert in his style, William discusses how his team relies on debates not screens and focuses on what company management says v. what they do in order to determine where the value lies.

We turn then to the decision to launch his own firm, which he took at a particularly young age. We note the support he had from a range of backers who saw talent and believed in it, and how he has now built on his initial traction to gain scale.

William has a clear love of markets, their complexity and unpredictability, and this conversation is a refreshing look at what makes them so appealing and filled with opportunity.

This series of The Fiftyfaces Podcast was made possible by the kind support of Alvine Capital, a specialist investment advisor and placement boutique based in London.