PayPal isn't going to make anyone's list of Hottest Fintech Companies but this 'Original FinTech' has been on a tear over the last year. The company has added 72m users, partnered with merchants like Nike, and almost tripled its market cap. Now Schulman and team have their sights set on building the ever-elusive ‘super app'. That’s not a good idea.
There are many superlatives that could be ascribed to 2020 (“Craziest Year Ever” anyone?) “Taps’ Most Active Year of Book Reading” will not be one of them. I worked my way through 15 books last year. Mostly non-fiction, their themes centered on finding meaning, working through troubled times, and creative output. While I didn’t finish my reading challenge of 26 books (I am choosing not to count toddler classics I memorized this year like Ten Apples Up on Top, Dragons Love Tacos, One Button Benny, Ganesha’s Sweet Tooth, P is for Potty, and Goodnight Construction Site), all things considered, it was not a bad year for reading.
Ant Group was on track to be the largest IPO in history. Then, Jack Ma poked the Dragon, setting off a chain of events that derailed the runaway money train and halted the IPO. At first glance, the story fits a common narrative. But what if Jack Ma wanted to halt the IPO?
Don’t let Ant Group’s name fool you, it is anything but small. The centacorn formerly known as Ant Financial finally filed to go public, jointly listing in both Shanghai and Hong Kong, and sharing more details on the business. Founded in 2004 as an offshoot of Alibaba, the far-reaching behemoth has come to dominate the payment and financial services markets over the last 15 years. The scale and scope of the company make it far more than ‘just another wallet’.
The murder of George Floyd has reinforced that my understanding of America is woefully incomplete. An armchair quarterback's knowledge of the country's history and subjugation of African Americans - some key players, some relevant stats, some strengths, and weaknesses - is not sufficient to understand where we are going. James Baldwin once said, "History is not the past. It is the present. We carry our history with us. We are our history." Understanding the past requires teachers as guides. I start my history lesson with Baldwin.
COVID-19 will fundamentally reshape the global economy, particularly how and where we work. While some industries can comfortably accommodate working remotely, others don't have that luxury. A great example: construction. The current state is not sustainable, resulting in the need for alternative approaches to building that are safer and healthier. It’s time to reevaluate modular construction.
As we all adjust to the new 'After COVID' normal, those of us lucky enough to be able to work remotely are part of a grand experiment in WFH. However, these times are not truly representative of what distributed work looks like at scale. There is a big difference between working from home under normal circumstances and working from home during a global pandemic. The way we move forward needs to be considerate and deliberate. These are my suggestions for WFH during these uncertain times.
I’ve been working in the startup ecosystem for the last decade, both as an investor and operator. As a result, I am often asked for advice about finding the right startup to join and then negotiating a startup job offer. Here is a consolidated set of my advice, tips, and resources for people wondering how and what they should negotiate for in their job offer.
I never got to meet Kobe Bryant. I only watched him play live twice. Yet, news of his death in a helicopter crash with eight other passengers (including his 13-year-old daughter) lands like a haymaker to the gut. A devastating blow on so many levels, a tragic reminder of life's fragility.
Rest In Paradise, Kobe. Thank you for the memories.
2019 was a year of new adventures. I transitioned into an advisory role at Poynt, where I had spent the past five years helping over 100,000 businesses get access to technology to supercharge their business growth. I navigated the early days of learning how to be “Dad” after welcoming my son into the world in late 2018. I had the opportunity to work with some incredible early-stage founders as an angel investor. Now, as a new decade begins so does my next chapter: Legion.
My 2019 in reading saw me finish 20 books with quite a few more left unfinished. I made it a point to read more fiction than usual, which I found quite refreshing. While I didn’t finish my reading challenge of 26 books (I am choosing not to count baby books including such classics as The Pout-Pout Fish, I am a Bunny, Giraffes Can’t Dance, Brown Bear Brown Bear What do you See) it was a good year of reading! Below is the list with quick thoughts, as well as a link to the Taps’ Notes review if available. Enjoy!
Being a tourist in China just became a whole lot easier. Alipay and WeChat Pay — the dominant, QR-code based payment methods that have taken the world by storm — are now available for use by foreigners. This is a significant milestone for the companies and the country, and a harbinger for global expansion.
Building a startup is an entirely different experience from raising a child. There isn’t a pre-seed or seed round for the baby to help get you off the ground, despite the fact the product has been built already and there are over 7 billion examples of product-market fit. Yes, you can hire people to help care for the baby but you’re not going to be able to bring on hundreds (or thousands) of talented, capable and experienced people, aligned on the mission and vision, working together with a shared sense of purpose, to help take care of the infant. Incidents in the middle of the night are always a shitshow, and there isn’t a diaper-ops team in India around to take care of it. On top of daily stand-ups there are lie-downs, tummy time and crawl arounds. One on ones are impromptu, with unclear agendas. Conversations are one sided instead of collaborative, and most of the time you wonder if the other side understands what you’re saying in the first place. And bored meetings are more mind-numbing than you’d expect.
A month ago my wife Nisha and I welcomed our son Ishaan into the world. As any parent will tell you (solicited or not), having your first child changes things forever. Now, certain things in life you have to experience yourself to understand. Parenting is most definitely one of those. No amount of intellectualizing, scenario planning, reading books like “The Expectant Father”, “Bringing up Bebe” or “Twelve Hours’ Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old” will appropriately equip you for the emotional rush of seeing and holding your child for the first time. In that moment everything you’ve done to prepare for parenthood goes out the window and the ’new normal’ sets in.
A year in reading, 2021.