Wall Street: Elon and the everything app

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10 THINGS ON WALL STREET

Halfway there! Dan DeFrancesco in NYC, but I'm sad we might soon live in a world where kids can't get chocolate milk at school.

Today, we've got stories on another Wall Street titan pulling employees back to the office, the war for talented portfolio managers among top hedge funds, and how you can cosplay as your favorite HBO show this summer in Italy.

But first, what do you do for work?


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twitter musk 4x3

1. Follow the job postings.

How about that Twitter news?

No, I'm not talking about the company's incoming CEO, longtime ad exec Linda Yaccarino.

I'm more interested in X, Twitter's parent company, acquiring Laskie, a startup specializing in matching tech talent with potential employers. The move speaks to a broader strategy Musk has hinted at of creating a US super app.

If you're not familiar with the term, a super app is a combination of a bunch of different services — everything from banking to investing to ride sharing to social media — in a single app. While extremely popular in Asia, super apps haven't caught on in the US.

Musk, using Twitter as a jumping off point, is looking to change that. Experts, however, aren't convinced. There are multiple forces working against the success of a super app in the US, let alone one run by someone as polarizing as Musk. 

Which brings us to the news about Laskie. At first glance, the deal struck me as a bit odd. When I think of super apps, my mind goes toward pursuing users' wallets. (So to, it seems, does Musk's. Twitter has already applied for licenses to allow it to process payments.)

But a recruitment tool is arguably a better way into a user. First, the barrier for entry is a lot lower. It's easier to set up a profile on a job site than open another banking/investing account. (It's a lesson many fintechs have learned the hard way.)

And with many states adopting laws around salary transparency for job postings, operating a job marketplace offers valuable data on how much users could make.

It could also provide insight into where they live, the type of benefits they receive, and their overall career trajectory. All of that info builds a profile of a user that makes them easier to monetize, which is the end goal, after all. 

That's not to say it'll all be that easy. As experts have previously pointed out, super apps launching in the US face a steep, uphill battle. (More on that here.)

For more on the first acquisition for Twitter under Elon Musk, click here.

And here's why industry experts remain unconvinced about Elon Musk's plans to turn Twitter into a super app.


In other news:

Martha Stewart on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

2. Back to the office at BlackRock. The massive asset manager told employees it expects them in the office at least four days a week. However, unlike JPMorgan, Larry Fink and company had the decency to not implement the rule until September. (The Hamptons house is still on, you guys!) Read the memo here.

3. How top hedge funds attract star portfolio managers. John Pierson, who runs a recruiting firm specializing in PMs, details everything you've ever wanted to know about how funds attract and retain new talent. From what they look for to how they pay, check out all the deets.

4. Stashing money underneath your mattress is back in style. "Cash-stuffing," putting money in envelopes assigned for specific expenses, is all the rage with Gen Z these days. Just wait until they find out about rolling quarters. More on how Gen Z is finding success with the old-school budgeting method.  

5. Who needs M&A bankers when you've got AI? A 32-year-old Japanese founder is on track to be a billionaire thanks to an AI-powered matching service he created for small businesses looking for buyers. This is how it works.

6. Wells Fargo agrees to pay up... again. The bank is paying out $1 billion to settle a lawsuit alleging it defrauded shareholders by overselling its ability to recover from scandals that rocked the bank over the years, Reuters reports. More on the settlement here.

7. The latest victim of the real-estate comedown: the Hamptons. Prices on summer rentals in the beach towns of eastern Long Island have dropped as supply outweighs demand. Now you can get a place for the summer for only $100,000. What a steal!

8. Life in the suburbs on a budget. Getting priced out of New York, Boston, or Washington DC? (Aren't we all?) Here are some more affordable suburbs that are still spitting distance to the big cities. Check them out.

9. You can have your "White Lotus" moment for only $2,248 per night. Take a peak inside the Sicilian hotel where the second season of the HBO series was filmed. The place looks fantastic, and I hear the cheese is made by a blind nun in a basement.

10. How to say young, according to Martha Stewart. As the oldest Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover star at 81, Stewart seems to be doing something right. Here are three of her key rules for staying youthful.


Curated by Dan DeFrancesco in New York. Feedback or tips? Email ddefrancesco@insider.com, tweet @dandefrancesco, or connect on LinkedIn. Edited by Jeffrey Cane (tweet @jeffrey_cane) in New York and Hallam Bullock (tweet @hallam_bullock) in London. 

 

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