A SHOW ABOUT MONEY. BUT NOT IN THE WAY YOU THINK.
Set against the backdrop of growing economic inequality, Capital After Dark is a podcast that explores the financial forces that have shaped our economy. We unravel the hidden stories of the financial system—its failures, its reinventions, and the radical alternatives emerging in its shadow.
Our Themes
Understanding the Context
To understand today’s economy, we have to trace the rise of finance—from the first stock companies and colonial trade empires to the modern dominance of banks, hedge funds, and asset managers. Finance has transformed from a peripheral function into the central architecture of global capitalism. We look at how these institutions gained power, how economic theories like neoliberalism gave them ideological cover, and how financial instruments have turned homes, healthcare, and even water into speculative assets.
The Financial Systems that Govern Our World
You’ve probably heard the terms: Venture capital, private equity, hedge funds, … but do you really know what they are, how they operate, and the ways they shape our everyday lives? These economic engines operate behind the scenes for a reason.
Exploring Better Solutions
Together we sketch out what it would look like to build out a new financial infrastructure that supports the kind of economy we want while serving the needs of savers and investors. We go deep with the people building alternatives to the centralized, global financial system, showcasing the real possibility of building resilient, pluralistic, and community-driven financial institutions.
Recent Episodes
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Meet the Host
Emma Ractliffe is an entrepreneur and investor currently based in New Mexico. Emma is Head of Investments at World Within a nonprofit that invests in social entrepreneurs and innovators who are planting the seeds of an equitable future by building community wealth and well-being. Emma also works in an advisory capacity supporting investors deploy capital into regenerative agriculture. Previously Emma spent 3 years working with smallholder farmers in Egypt and India. Emma has a BA in Economics from Dartmouth College, an MBA from Stanford University and serves on the advisory council at the Cornell School of Agriculture.