We wanted to learn how to invest and find great companies. This is because cash loses value over time. The problem was that we didn't know where to look and information online is fragmented. We would often sit around together with our Robinhood accounts open and discuss companies and their stock prices, only to later realize that this was mostly speculation. We then learned about reading financial reports and came to the realization that they were 200 pages long and nearly impossible to understand.
Here’s the problem: while we do technically have access to these reports and resources they aren’t the easiest to digest and use, at least not to those aspiring to be retail investors. We like to say that a massive library has been filled with information, but most people haven’t been taught to read!
Our pivotal “Eureka” moments came to us in the form of two quotes by legendary investors:
1. "In business, I look for economic castles protected by unbreachable 'moats'" - Warren Buffet
2. "Never invest in any idea you can't illustrate with a crayon" - Peter Lynch
Our takeaways were simple. We needed to look for companies with “moats” - durable competitive advantages that allow a company to maintain and increase profitability and market share in the long term. We also needed to be able to express our ideas and verdicts in simple and concise ways. Traditional investment theses and pitches aren’t only daunting for the average person, they’re also super long!
In the words of actress and artist Kimberly “Sweet Brown” Wilkins: “Ain’t nobody got time for that!”
And that’s why we came up with moat. We hope to make it a space for people of all backgrounds to share and find investment ideas that they can understand and actually use. Unlike other platforms that only provide a forum for people to discuss stocks, which often leads to a herd mentality, we focus on the fundamentals behind a company. In doing so, we hope to empower people and their investment decisions.
What's next? Read more about the 'Moat Card Philosophy' here!