Navigating the Wild West of finance: Talking hedge fund success and more with Wayne Nelson

Published: June 02, 2023

Some call today’s explosive cryptocurrency market the wild west of finance with its unbridled dealings, high risk, and no principled lawman in sight. Not so long ago, hedge trading earned the same reputation.

All this craziness surrounding lucrative-but-dicey trade begs the question, “What’s a straight-shooting investor to do?”

Try prayer, says Wayne Nelson. Try leaning into the Holy Spirit.

Whoa . . . what does the most mysterious personage of the Holy Trinity have to do with investing?

Everything, says the man who has come to know the boundless work and ways of the Holy Spirit.

Truth that outlasts empires

Real estate developer Wayne Nelson switched things up about 15 years ago when he sold his vast property holdings for $37.45 million. The 6,000 apartments included Indiana’s two largest apartment communities. As he tells it, a divine nudge preceded his decision to sell. He recognized the Spirit’s felt presence and clear direction; he had experienced it before.

After the sale, Nelson started a private hedge fund and embarked on a second prosperous career, this time as an investor. In 2016, the fund had generated a 27 percent annual return over the prior seven years. Through it all, Nelson practiced a discipline he had cultivated long ago: Spirit-led prayer.

It helps Nelson keep his success in perspective and reminds him that his faith in Jesus Christ is more enduring and more substantial than any self-made enterprise. His faith existed long before his empires emerged and will have meaning long after they end. Daily prayer and sensitivity to the Spirit connect him to that eternal truth.

Nelson’s body reminds him of a truth as well. A near-death automobile accident years ago forever limited his abilities. Still, it opened his eyes to divine grace and God’s goodness. God blessed Nelson with a measure of resilience and with curiosity that fueled surprising new pursuits.

Blue-collar upbringing, attentive mentors

Nelson credits his working-class parents for setting him on a sound path during his formative years in Indianapolis. His dad, a tool and die man, and his mom, a homemaker, valued faith and education for Nelson and his sister.

Nelson arrived at Greenville College (now University) in 1959 to study business. There, he met two profound influences:

• One, business professor and eventual president of Greenville College, Glenn Richardson. Their frequent exchanges helped Nelson see how to integrate his Christian faith with a profession. Upon graduation, Nelson carried that vision into the workforce.
• Two, Professor Watson Tidball, whose opinions and assessments Nelson valued. The pair continued their conversations beyond class, beyond graduation, and beyond years. Nelson once helped Tidball secure a needed meeting place in Indianapolis. Ever grateful, Tidball recalled it decades later as if it had just happened: “You provided more than adequate space and added a spread of food that made me look good . . . Thank you for being such a good friend . . .”

An anomaly on Wall Street

Although Nelson expresses gratitude for these past influences, he talks about his Spirit-led faith journey more in the present tense: “I pray a great deal . . . I study the scriptures. I worship.”

Dynamic “living” faith in Jesus Christ may not fit the Wall Street persona, but Nelson’s okay with that. His mastery of market research and analysis is undeniable; his achievements draw attention. “Wall Street knows my name,” he says.

Still, an attitude of prayer reminds him of a more valuable truth, that Jesus knows his name.

Uncommon generosity, an eye on the future

When Nelson steps out of the wild west and into philanthropy, he keeps an eye on the future, like the time he donated 20 acres of prime land to the Henry County YMCA in New Castle, Indiana. Sale of the property provided funds for the “Y” to retire its debt and continue to serve youth for generations to come.

Or the time he and wife Marilyn, his partner in a 38-year marriage, established a foundation that grants scholarships for youth to attend charter schools. Each scholarship signals a brightened future.

Or the service Nelson rendered as a trustee on the boards of Greenville University and Hillsdale College. The clarity that enables him to see through a flood of market data also enables him to zero in on what today’s young people, tomorrow’s leaders, need. Here’s a sampling:

• Encouragement - “Young people hear that they can’t do today what we did 20, 30 or 40 years ago, but I think there are more opportunities today than there have ever been.”
• Read much – Well-informed means well-read. Nelson’s work demands that he know about an event before it happens. “For me to be six months to a year ahead, that’s a real challenge . . . I read four hours a day. I’m very careful about what I read, too. There’s a lot of junk out there.”
• Take your work seriously – Nelson reviews research from various sources. He consumes the information, but then goes a step further by critiquing each analysis and returning the critique to its sender. Young people can learn to add value as well, thoroughly thinking through implications and outcomes, and taking the initiative to share their good work with others who value it. They don’t have to wait for an invitation.
• Cultivate curiosity – Curiosity is a precious gift. Wonder opens surprising doors to ideas and relationships. Stay curious.

On bleak forecasts

What does the well-read analyst say when the choices of today’s leaders foretell a bleak inheritance for the next generation? His initial dismay gives way to advice: “Pray for Christ to send us good leaders . . . and pray for a miracle.” After all, he adds, the U.S. “is a 250-year-old miracle . . . the best place in the whole world.”

There’s no surety where humbling oneself in prayer leads, but Nelson is sure that heartfelt prayer and heeding that divine nudge wherever it leads always matters—for today, for tomorrow, and forever.