# S3 | Episode 5: Infrastructure Investing - Aqueducts, Statecraft & the New Power Brokers

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/capital-decanted-6600567/s3-episode-5-infrastructure-investing-aqueducts-statecraft-the-new-power-brokers
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/capital-decanted-6600567/s3-episode-5-infrastructure-investing-aqueducts-statecraft-the-new-power-brokers.md
Podcast: [Capital Decanted](https://stenobird.com/podcast/capital-decanted-6600567)
Published: 2026-02-24T16:38:45+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/capital-decanted/episodes/S3--Episode-5-Infrastructure-Investing---Aqueducts--Statecraft--the-New-Power-Brokers-e3fi09h
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/e7ad5f9c/podcast/play/115982065/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-1-24%2F80c3c756-3e7e-5723-0250-493b4aa90aa1.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/capital-decanted-6600567/episodes/s3-episode-5-infrastructure-investing-aqueducts-statecraft-the-new-power-brokers
Duration seconds: 5809

## Resource

What happens when governments can't fund infrastructure anymore? A $1.6 trillion private asset class that doesn't recognize itself in the mirror. In the 2020s, infrastructure has entered a battlefield where geopolitics, government agendas, and investor returns collide. We trace infrastructure's evolution from nation-building mechanism to one of the most integrated asset classes in modern investing. In this episode, we explore a central tension: is infrastructure still a stable, boring, income-generating asset, or has it become a bigger bet on which governments can actually execute their vision? Joined by Peter Blue of Franklin Templeton and Gautam Bhandari of I Squared, we dive into one of the oldest asset classes in human history. Guests: Peter Blue, CFA, CAIA, FRM, Head of Private Market Solutions, Franklin Templeton Gautam Bhandari, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, I Squared Capital Episode Sources (00:00) Infrastructure as an invisible but essential backbone of daily life and economic activity. (01:24)Introduction to infrastructure as a paradox: ancient in practice, modern as an institutional asset class. (03:43) The projected $100 trillion global infrastructure investment need through 2040 and the funding gap. (06:06) Infrastructure allocations remain modest despite structural tailwinds and capital demand. (10:32) Infrastructure as both inanimate and “alive” through its system-wide economic impact. (12:04) Roman publicani as early private infrastructure investors and the blending of public and private capital. (16:24) Infrastructure historically used as a tool of statecraft, control, and regime stability. (20:35) The Gilded Age, robber barons, and the rise of private capital in U.S. infrastructure development. (24:50) Australia’s superannuation system and privat…

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