Four banks went bust this year and I made money betting against all of them

Barry Norris runs the Argonaut Absolute Return fund, which has risen by 80pc over the past five years and even gained value during the coronavirus panic of early 2020. He combines taking traditional “long” positions in stocks he expects to do well with “short-selling” those he considers overvalued or even fraudulent.

When Charlie Munger died last month at the age of 99 it marked the end of the world’s most successful investment partnership – with Warren Buffett, aged 93.

Although junior in terms of ownership of Berkshire Hathaway, Munger was credited with persuading Buffett to move his investment approach away from buying “fair businesses at wonderful prices” to buying “wonderful businesses at fair prices”.

But Munger was also the sceptical counterpoint in the 60-year friendship. Buffett, the “Sage of Omaha”, called Munger, who had a veto over improvident Berkshire acquisitions, the “Abominable No-Man”.