La Vie En Rose
w.237 | 5-Year Anniversary, Limmy, EdTech Consolidation, Bitcoin Adoption
Dear Friends,
Last week was my 5th anniversary of writing this newsletter. I sat briefly, thinking about the many iterations, the passage of time, and the many words written. But mostly about you, my loyal community, for giving your time and attention to this weird and wonderful creation and for being part of the ride. My only wish is for more time to put what's percolating in my head into words. Maybe someday.
I have no plans to stop, so cheers to another five. Thank you, everybody, for being here and for those of you who choose to send notes when something strikes your fancy.
Today's Contents:
Good Reads: Sensible Investing
Song of the Week: La Vie En Rose
Good Reads: Sensible Investing
The College Admissions TikToker Who Tried To Crack the Code (link to the PDF). As you know, I’m a huge Limmy fan, and I love this profile that The Chronicle of Higher Education did of him and his popular college admissions TikTok account. Limmy graduated from Duke a few months ago and is just getting started.
EdTech Companies' Financial Shifts from Eric Lavin and Perplexity. Perplexity is an amazing research tool, and I love how Eric quickly put together this piece of analysis.
This week, there were two big pieces of EdTech news. First, PowerSchool, a massive student information system once owned by Pearson, was taken private by KKR. Second, 2U declared bankruptcy. 2U a company that ran online degree programs for universities and was once valued at $5B. I wrote two and a half years ago in DS w.134:
2U ($TWOU) went public in 2014 but might be demonstrative of the 'Is this a broken business model?' question. With poor growth prospects, the stock is down 43% this week. On SeekingAlpha, bloggers are suggesting This May Go To Zero. The market is, perhaps, beginning to show that narrative alone can not sustain a company. As of today, $TWOU is unprofitable with $700M market capitalization. They have $200 million in cash and $800 million in debt. Looks like Spruce Point's investment report from 2018 was prescient.
Understanding Bitcoin Adoption in the United States: Politics, Demographics, & Sentiment. Full report from a ~4,000-person survey. Key takeaways:
Bitcoin ownership is not political.
Bitcoin owners tend to be younger and male, but are otherwise diverse.
A typical Bitcoiner has a blend of liberal and conservative moral foundations.
Major ownership predictors: knowledge, utility, trust, and morality
Song of the Week: Le Vie En Rose
Video on YouTube.
“La Vie En Rose,” the Louis Armstrong version.
La Vie En Rose translates from French to ‘to see life in pink’ or 'seeing the world through rose-colored classes. ' It was released in 1946 and inspired optimism after WWII.
This is my go-to song for testing the quality of a sound system. The trumpet, Louis’s remarkable voice, the range. It’s perfect. Also, a feel-good message never hurts, and with the Olympics starting this week in Paris, why not give the French a nod?
Give your heart and soul to me
And life will always be
La vie en roseSelfie of the Week
I hung out with my friend Nick Ducoff in Brooklyn this week.
Thanks for reading, friends. Please always be in touch.
As always,
Katelyn