Darío Epstein: 'Milei's plan is the only real way to move forward'

During an interview on Neura, financial analyst Darío Epstein firmly supported the economic policy led by President Javier Milei. Founder of the consulting firm Research for Traders and former public official, Epstein stated that the current government "has the best economic team of recent decades" and that the chosen path, although demanding, "is the only possible one if we want a viable country."

"You have a president who knows a great deal about macroeconomics and assembled a team where the minister (Luis Caputo) has unique expertise in finance. Meanwhile, his right-hand man is Pablo Quirno, who can smoke underwater," praised Epstein, highlighting the technical quality of the cabinet.

"We have no more room to keep overspending"

One of the clearest points in Epstein's analysis was his support for fiscal balance.  "I love Milei's plan: I don't spend more than what I take in. It's the only way to move forward in the medium term. We have no more room to keep financing deficits," he stated.

He also explained that the mechanism of refinancing debt is not a sin, but rather a common practice globally.  "That's how the United States, Japan, and France work. It's rollover, it's not more debt. We need to put an end to the myth", he concluded. For the economist, what matters is not so much the debt-to-GDP ratio, but how much of the budget is allocated to interest payments: "That's the data that matters."

Artificial intelligence, a paradigm shift in the financial world

Darío Epstein explained that the advance of artificial intelligence is radically transforming the way financial analysis is conducted. According to him,  tools like Gemini or ChatGPT already allow for obtaining complex data and real-time balance sheet analysis, something unthinkable until recently. "We asked what the break-even price of a barrel of oil is for certain companies to be profitable, and AI not only calculated it, but also explained it with sources and data that we couldn't verify," he said, surprised. For Epstein, this represents a direct threat to the traditional research model, which now sees its continuity in jeopardy.

In this context,  Epstein envisions a new role for financial analysts: to serve as a bridge between the user and language models. "It's no longer about writing the report, but about knowing what and how to ask," he stated. This redefinition of the role occurs in a context where artificial intelligence not only accelerates processes, but also begins to set market trends. "If millions ask an AI which stocks to buy, and everyone acts accordingly, it ends up generating a self-fulfilling prophecy. That's the magnitude of the change we're seeing," he warned. For Epstein, a revolution is coming in financial services, which is just in its initial stage.

Debt placement: a sign of confidence

Epstein paused to analyze the government's recent operation in which one billion dollars were raised through peso-denominated bonds. "It was a very sophisticated move. Foreign investors wanted to invest in pesos because they trust that the dollar will remain stable. So the government took their dollars and gave them peso bonds," he explained.

Although this is debt under Argentine law, the economist assured that "it's a positive sign", since it shows that the country is beginning to recover some of the lost credit. "After years of populism, they issued currency, we lost access to markets, and we destroyed our relative prices. Now everything needs to be rebuilt," he emphasized.

"Going back to the past would be a disaster"

In another part of the conversation, Epstein was convinced that society must accompany the cultural change proposed by the libertarian government.  "Argentina was a country where the cunning and the corrupt prevailed. Now, at last, we reward meritocracy and effort. Going back to the past would mean taking a thousand steps backward," he stated.

He also described himself as  "bullish on Argentina", that is, optimistic about the future: "I'm invested in what they're doing. This isn't for me, since I'm already older. It's so that young people aged 20, 25 can have a good job and a decent retirement."

Finally, when asked about a possible participation in the government, he replied humorously: "Milei is smart enough not to offer me anything. But I support his plan with total conviction."