Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), under the leadership of its founder and CEO Jeff Sprecher, has built a rare combination of financial-infrastructure assets. Its Exchanges business benefits from a high-margin, self-reinforcing liquidity moat; Fixed Income & Data Services provides sticky, recurring data and workflow revenues; and Mortgage Technology offers exposure to the structurally growing digitisation of the US mortgage market, albeit at lower margins. Together, these three businesses give ICE a valuable mix of transaction-driven revenues, recurring subscriptions and long-term structural growth.

Intercontinental Exchange Inside The Ice House

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Two of these three franchises have also benefited materially from regulation. In the aftermath of Enron, the Global Financial Crisis and the LIBOR-rigging scandal, regulators repeatedly pushed activity towards centralised, transparent and well-capitalised infrastructure providers, reinforcing the advantages of scale and incumbency. The key question for investors today is whether that pattern still holds, or whether prediction-market operators such as Kalshi represent a genuinely different threat - one capable of building liquidity without regulation forcing flow in its direction.

That uncertainty is now reflected in ICE’s valuation. ICE’s shares have derated relative to exchange and ratings peers over the last five years and now trade at around 18x 2027 earnings, a 10–20% discount to the peer group.

_{Source: ShareScope}

Part of that discount reflects scepticism around the returns on its $24bn investment in Mortgage Technology and concern over new forms of competition. Yet ICE has still compounded adjusted EPS at around 10% a year over the last decade despite the brake on earnings growth from the investment in Mortgage Technology. If its core exchange and data franchises continue to grow, Mortgage Technology begins to earn an acceptable return on the capital invested, and the threat from perpetual futures proves manageable, the current discount looks increasingly difficult to justify.

Disclosure: I may own some of the shares mentioned in this article. This note should not in any way be construed as financial advice. The purpose of The Curious Compounder is to inform subscribers about companies which I find interesting. I’m grateful for all feedback, especially any negatives or bear points that I may have missed.

Goodwin’s trading update opened with a model of calm continuity: “It is encouraging that the Group’s trading performance remains in line with expectations, as outlined in the October 2025 trading update.” Yet the market’s reaction was anything but calm. The shares fell 47%.

Understandably the Middle East will have an impact on trading, where Goodwin supplies valves to petrochemical companies, but management also chose to elaborate on lost opportunities. In trying to be comprehensive, management turned its update into a “Bullseye” moment: reminding investors not of what had been won, but of what might have been.

Curious Compounder Goodwin March 2026

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For those unfamiliar with British tea-time television, Bullseye was a darts-based game show where contestants competed for a star prize. If they fell short, host Jim Bowen would console them with the now-infamous line: “Let’s see what you could have won”, before revealing a speedboat or luxury holiday they would never take home. The trading statement had some of those qualities.

In this note I run through what the company said and my interpretation of the issues. There are a few misconceptions in the market that I feel need to be corrected.

The full announcement is contained at the end of this note.

Free to Read.

Disclosure: I may own some Goodwin plc shares. This note should not in any way be construed as financial advice. The purpose of The Curious Compounder is to inform subscribers about interesting companies. I’m grateful for all feedback, especially any negatives or bear points that I may have missed

“I always have been attracted to the low-cost operator in any business... when you find a very large gap in operating costs between the low-cost operator and all of the other companies in the industry, you have a really attractive investment situation.” Warren Buffett, on GEICO

Warren Buffett wrote about GEICO’s low-cost leadership in US motor insurance. He could have been writing about Admiral. Founded in Cardiff in 1993 as the seventh direct motor insurer in the UK, eight years behind Direct Line, Admiral has grown to market leader, insuring one in five drivers in the UK and boasting 12m customers across all of its business lines. Admiral continues to delight its customers, lead on data analysis and deliver product innovation. Its profit margins remain industry leading, despite its growth, and the Group’s return on equity that is the envy of most participants in European financial services.

Curious Compounder Admiral March 2026

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Underpinning its business model is something most insurance companies simply do not have: a genuinely distinctive culture. From day one, co-founders Henry Engelhardt and David Stevens built Admiral around the idea that happy employees produce happy customers, and happy customers produce better financial results. Every member of staff, from frontline call handlers to senior executives, receives free shares annually. There are no reserved parking spaces, no executive dining room, and the same desks for everyone. Admiral has appeared in the Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For list for 25 consecutive years, achieving “Legendary” status. This isn’t just feel-good window dressing: lower staff turnover means lower recruitment costs, which feeds directly into Admiral’s ability to price competitively. In a commoditised industry, culture turns out to be one of the most durable competitive advantages of all.

What makes Admiral interesting now is the UK motor insurance cycle. Personal motor premiums have fallen nearly 30% from their 2024 peak. The industry combined ratio is forecast to hit 112% in 2026. Less advantaged competitors will move from profits to losses, which always focuses the minds of senior executives! I believe we are approaching a positive inflection in the pricing of UK motor insurance, likely bringing Admiral’s share price with it as investors anticipate growing profits.

This note covers: Admiral’s structural cost advantage in UK motor and whether it can last; how Admiral’s co-insurance / quota share model lets it grow without tying up capital; the Group’s diversification into Other Personal Lines, Admiral Money and European motor; and what the current valuation implies for returns from here.

UK motor insurance · Compounders · Dividend investing · Insurance cycle · Admiral Group (ADM)

As ever, the Curious Compounder is free to read and free to subscribe to.

Stay curious,

Simon

Disclosure: I may own some Admiral plc shares. This note should not in any way be construed as financial advice. The purpose of The Curious Compounder is to inform subscribers about interesting companies. I’m grateful for all feedback, especially any negatives or bear points that I may have missed.

I was contracted by a family office and also an investment organisation to conduct some company research. It was great getting into the bones of the companies, one of which I knew well, the other I didn’t. Both clients were very happy with the output. (Please contact me if you would like me to do some research for your organisation). However, this meant I was unable to write on companies for a few weeks. I’m now back and have a few ideas on the go.

2026

A really fascinating start to the year. Unless you are a software company or a company that uses software to deliver a product.

I have been an investor in markets for coming up to 30 years. The playbook is similar every time. The “winners” of any particular paradigm shift are feted and go on to achieve eye watering valuations. For a few this is justified. For others not. As ever it will not be for a few years until we find out just how mauch the fundamentals have changed.

The “losers” are summarily shot, as in “shoot first, ask questions later”. Again it will not be for a few years until we find out how badly their fundamentals are dented by the advance of AI.

A number of software and media companies like RELX or Sage have fallen heavily over the last six months, down 46% and 35% respectively. The market has badged them ‘AI losers’. Just like investors were concerned that RELX’s Scientific, Medical & Technical divisons profits might be severely impacted by Open Access in 2018, they are now concerned that advances in artifical intelligence will allow customers to create their own code, negating the need for the specialist software.

Attitudes can and do change.

Alphabet’s shares came under pressure in early 2025 as it was suggested that AI may challenge Google’s dominance in Search. Fast forward a year and Alphabet is seen as an AI winner given its advances integrating its Gemini chat / large language model into search and and the development of its own chips (Tensor Processing Units) to accelerate training and inference for neural networks

It should be remembered many software companies have been riding high for a number of years. In RELX and Sage’s case they are coming down off relatively high valuation multiples (c25-30x forward PE). I can’t predict how low their mutiples will go but they are starting to look interesting with cashlow multiples in the mid teens.

I can offer a few recent examples where the patient made money from buying well financed companies companies at attractive multiples when there was blood on the streets:

Supermarkets: Remember when we were all only ever going to do our grocery shops online? Tesco’s market cap reached c£15bn in 2022 and was valued at under 10x earnings, while Ocado hit £28 per share and was worth £22bn. Post COVID we realised we quite liked doing our shopping in store, while Ocado still hasnt made a profit and its shares are down over 90% since then. Tesco’s on the other had has more than doubled.

Ciagarettes: Imperial Brands had its ‘Hamlet moment’ falling to a PE of 6x in 2021 and a dividend yield of over 12%. Essentially the market was saying that the profits would be wiped out in less than 6 years. It was also peak ESG so virtually every institutional holder was forced to jettison the shares. Pre tax profits in 2026 are forecast to be about the same level as 2021 while the earnings per share are growing due to aggressive share buybacks. Including dividends, Imperial has returned 172% over the last 5 years. (Its worth remembering that were you early into shares in 2019, at which point the shares had already halved from their prior peak in 2017 and were trading with a dividend yield of 11% you would have to watch them halve again before the shares started to rebound.

Motor insurers: remember when Elon Musk predicted in 2015 that automous vehicles would be on every street by 2017 and a fleet of robo taxis would be on the roads by 2020? It turns out that Mr Musk is still predicting that widespread adoption of driverless cars is only a couple of years away but reality has hit in the form of reduced subsidies for electric vehicles, the fact that most people quite like driving their car themselves, the charging network remains undeveloped and the biggest barrier to adoption is still range anxiety. Despite a recent pull back, Admiral shares have returned 150% over the last 10 years.

Blockbuster Video / HMV / Yellow Pages: these are a pertinent reminder that technology does change and unless companies invest to keep up, they are imperilling themselves.

I’m afraid there is no magic bullet here in which companies to buy and how low valuations can go (lower than you think unfortunately). But it always comes back to customer, customer, customer.

Does the company that you are looking to invest in have a product that its customers really like, and if they dont really like it eg car insurance (I mean who actually likes car insurance - Sorry Henry!) do they offer it at a great price and make it easy to buy ? Does it have a management team that are prepared to forego profits today to have a better business tomorrow? Is the company investing in AI to improve its offering to customers, making it faster and easier to use?

I have started dipping my toe cautiously in recent days where I can find acceptable valuations and companies that meet the criteria above. I know I will not pick the bottom but I like to have a couple of starter positions that I can scale up should the data turn out to be less bad than the market is currently projecting.

Companies
Coming soon, I hope to finish off a couple of notes I am writing. I wouldn’t describe them as ”buy” notes as I am trying to educate, not offer investment advice but I hope they will be of interest and spark some debate. Feel free to challenge my views.

If you are an investment organisation and would like me to present or have a chat about what I written, please do get in touch.

Stay Curious !

Simon

Remember Wise’s growth algorithim

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The more customers that use its transfer services the more it can invest into improving its technology and speed of transfer, introducing new products (‘Assets’, Wise card, <18 accounts etc) and cutting its take rate. Its a virtuous cycle. But does not come without investment costs.

Wise has cut its ‘take rate’ (the commission rate it charges customers on cross border transfers) by 10bps or 16% to 52bps over the last year. This automatically creates a headwind to your revenues when you cut your commission rate so aggressively. But this drove:

Active customers 13.4m +18%
Total cross border volumes £85bn +24%
Spend on Wise cards £28bn +27%
Customer holdings £25bn +37%
Own cash on the balance sheet £1.6bn +49%
Wise Platform volumes £4.2bn +55%

Overall revenues grew 11%, however costs rose 27% and as a result net income fell 14%.

This note delves into both the revenues and the (much higher) costs and attempts to conclude whether Wise is investing for future growth or has under invested historically and whether the shares offer good value at 875p.

As ever, its free to read.

Stay curious,

Simon

Wise Plc Investors Dilemma Nov 25 Substack

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Its a bit of fun to see the quality of an AI generated podcast (using my note). It simplifies the Investment case into a 15 minute podcast and is a discussion between two hosts.

Why?

1. Because some people would prefer to listen to a long form note rather than read it.
2. I’m keen to test out AI in its many forms.
3. It was relatively quick to make.

So please comment below - good and bad. I’m happy to listen.

Thanks

Simon

PS click the button below to subscribe.

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I may earn a small commission if you purchase via the Amazon list above.

Here are two of my favourite autobiographies / biographies and a fascinating account of life in North Korea told through the lives of six defectors *.

Shoe Dog

By Phil Knight

A swashbuckling autobiography about how Phil Knight built Nike from scratch. In many ways, it’s a modern take on the American Dream, Phil Knight starts out importing Tiger running shoes from Onitsuka Co. in Japan, funded by just $50 borrowed from his father. Shoe Dog somehow manages to blend ancient Greek philosophy, import-export logistics, and the eternal mystery of how one man can have so many near-death experiences involving cash flow.

That last point ties neatly to the motto Phil carried from his running days at the University of Oregon under coach Bill Bowerman:

“Our motto, borrowed from the 442nd Infantry, was ‘Go for broke.’ We’d used it when we were runners at Oregon, and now it seemed right for this new business.”

In hindsight it’s amazing that Nike actually survived. The book is full of humour, grit, and near misses. Phil’s perseverance and tenacity shine through in every chapter. It’s also refreshing to read the reliance he places on his employees and partners, as behind every great corporation are colleagues pulling together to create something extraordinary.

My only disappointment is Shoe Dog ends around 1980, just after Nike goes public — before the deal with Michael Jordan. That later chapter, with Michael’s mother Deloris playing a decisive role in pushing him to meet with Nike (he’d preferred Adidas and Converse shoes) and securing a share of future Air Jordan revenues, deserves a book of its own. What a mum!

If you want to see that story play out, watch Air with Matt Damon — a great movie inspired by an even better book. You will want to race through it.

Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/4quHsIP

Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.

By Ron Chernow

Few business biographies capture both the brilliance and contradictions of a titan quite like Ron Chernow’s Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.

Like Chernow’s other biographies of four generations of John Pierpoint Morgan’s family, the Warburgs and George Washington, the portrait of Rockefeller, who was at the time the world’s richest man, is immense in scope. It charts the rise of Standard Oil, the ruthless efficiency that reshaped American capitalism, and the personal paradox of a man who built an empire through near-monopolistic control and yet devoted his later life to philanthropy and faith.

The author gives a balanced view of a man about whom extreme views are commonplace. He neither canonises nor condemns Rockefeller. Instead, he reveals a man of extraordinary discipline: meticulous in business even from a very early age, devout in religion despite an unstable family background, yet capable of breathtaking aggression in competition. Rockefeller’s legendary self-control - recording every penny, every transaction – contrasts strongly with the zeitgeist of the day which was make money quickly and show it off.

For investors and business readers, Titan is full of timeless lessons. Rockefeller’s success owed as much to method and patience as to daring. He prized steady compounding over flash enterprise. He reinvested profits, expanding quietly, and mastering logistics before marketing. In some ways he reminds me of Sam Walton in Made in America in terms of his concentration towards his goals and devotion to cost control, but without the folksy charm of Sam, with Rockefeller a much more reserved and private individual.

Yet Chernow also exposes the darker side of extreme consolidation and secrecy — how unchallenged power distorts both markets and morality. The antitrust battles and public backlash against Standard Oil remind us about scale without transparency – something that feels relevant today given the size of some of the world’s corporations.

The second half of the book, chronicling Rockefeller’s philanthropy — funding universities, medical research, and public health — reveals a profound transformation. His lifelong Baptist faith shaped a belief that wealth was a trust to be stewarded for society, not flaunted. He was a committed donor to his church throughout his life, even when growing up not well off in Upstate New York and so we should not be surprised at this personal evolution.

At over 700 pages, Titan demands the reader’s time, and is not as swashbuckling as Shoe Dog or Made in America but is worth persevering with. It gives the reader a sweeping history of modern capitalism’s birth and a deeply human study of ambition, control, and ultimately change.

For anyone interested in how character, discipline, and faith can shape — and complicate — vast wealth creation, Titan is essential reading.

Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3WjoMh9

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

By Barbara Demick

Few books capture the human cost of totalitarianism as powerfully as Barbara Demick’s Nothing to Envy. Drawing on the stories of six defectors, Demick reconstructs daily life in Chongjin, an industrial city of half a million people far from Pyongyang’s staged propaganda. Through accounts of love, family, and persistent famine, she reveals what it means to survive in a society built on fear, secrecy, and absolute control.

North Korean children are taught to sing that “we have nothing to envy in the world,” but the reality could not be further from the truth. Hunger — both physical and emotional — permeates every page. Families boil weeds and grasses into thin soups, grind pine bark into flour, even pick undigested corn kernels from animal excrement. Allegiance to the Party remains outwardly absolute, yet doubt festers in private.

Demick’s narrative weaves together moments of heartbreak and resilience. The story of two young lovers, too afraid to admit to each other that they are considering defecting, captures the paralysing fear of an oppressed society. Yet amid despair there is ingenuity and courage: mothers unlearning a lifetime of propaganda to embrace illicit market trade, families using innovative methods to scavenge seaweed for food, and individuals risking everything to escape knowing that loved ones left behind will pay the price.

In the West we are fortunate to live in societies where we can challenge consensus and think independently - whether in our personal lives or as investors. Nothing to Envy is not just a window into a closed country; it is a powerful reminder of the value of questioning what we’re told to believe.

Link to Amazon: https://amzn.to/4o3ba5T

*I have put an affiliate link to Amazon where I may earn a tiny stipend if you buy a book which I can use to buy more biographies.

My friend and former colleague Mark Wharrier often reminds me that one of the most valuable skills in investing is pattern recognition. This is spotting the familiar clues that have preceded success or failure in the past. It’s amazing how often these indicators reoccur but in different situations. As Mark Twain said, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” The more highs and lows we’ve experienced when analysing individual companies as well as the wider stock market’s vagaries, the better perspective we gain on our own investing challenges or opportunities. Biographies offer a wonderful window into such historical situations.

Biographies remind us that most companies are like swans: graceful on the surface but paddling furiously underneath. There are always fires to fight, staff to motivate, and irrational competitors to handle. Nothing is ever quite as good or as bad as it looks.

Beyond the business mechanics, autobiographies especially, illuminate temperament — how people think under pressure, manage emotion, and recover from setbacks. You see not only the decisions they made, but how they made them: when to act boldly, when to wait, and when humility or restraint proved decisive. Often, the most enduring lessons come from failure, not triumph. Seeing how others endured reversals, and rebuilt, gives us perspective when markets inevitably turn against us.

A good biography can also serve as a virtual mentor. You can learn from the decisions others made and ask yourself, what would they do here? Charlie Munger even went as far as advising putting photos of people you admire in your office as a motivational tool. This creates a constant, visual reminder of your role models, which encourages you to uphold the standards you associate with them. Would you want to disappoint Charlie?

Biographies from some of the most successful people in history, whether founders, leaders or politicians, are littered with practical advice. All it costs is the price of the book, or even better, it’s free if you use a library. Take this excerpt from Sam Walton’s Made in America:

“Now, I want you to raise your right hand—and remember what we say at Wal-Mart, that a promise we make is a promise we keep—and I want you to repeat after me: From this day forward, I solemnly promise and declare that every time a customer comes within ten feet of me, I will smile, look him in the eye, and greet him. So help me Sam.”

The pledge cost nothing, yet Walton believed greeting customers would “work magic” for both employees and customers. That pledge, total focus on the customer, teamwork and cost consciousness created a retail behemoth with over 10,000 stores globally. It’s a great example of how great leaders turn small ideas into enduring culture.

And finally, many of these books are simply cracking good reads. You finish them feeling energised, encouraged, and a little wiser. As Walt Disney said, “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.”

Subscribe now

Recommendations

Each week I will list two business related biographies and a book from an ‘other’ category. There is a short precis of each one after the list. I hope you enjoy them.

Here are some of my favourites*:

You can click on the links above and in the text below which takes you to relevant Amazon page. Being transparent I will earn a small commission, but I hope you won’t mind.

Week 1 Picks

Made in America – Sam Walton

A brilliant autobiography, packed full of great advice and such fun to read, Made in America by Sam Walton is the story of the Walmart founder. charting his journey from a small-town retailer to the head of one of the world’s largest retail empires. Written in an enjoyable plainspoken, energetic style, the book captures Sam’s relentless drive for efficiency, low prices, and customer satisfaction (“there is only one boss, the customer”). Sam recounts how he built Walmart through a mix of frugality, innovation, and a deep understanding of small-town America. I learned so much from this book about importance of teamwork, employee empowerment (“associates”), and an obsession with keeping costs down – this has fed into my appreciation of lowest cost providers as an enduring investment theme. Beyond recounting business successes, Sam Walton offers insights into his personal values—hard work, optimism, a willingness to learn from mistakes and sharing the success with others: “Share your profits with all your associates, and treat them as partners. In turn, they will treat you as a partner, and together you will all perform beyond your wildest expectations”. If there is one thing you will take from this book its Sam’s work ethic – it was just phenomenal! If you read one autobiography this year, make this is it.

Be a Better Boss (in print) / Think Lead Succeed (out of print)

Think Lead Succeed and its successor Be a Better Boss, blend autobiography, leadership philosophy, and practical lessons through Henry Engelhardt’s experience founding and leading Admiral Insurance. Henry recounts how he and a small team transformed a car insurance start-up into one of the UK’s most admired (and profitable) insurers, emphasizing culture, trust, and continuous learning. It’s not exactly your standard management book, but then again Henry isn’t your standard CEO. The book is really well written, packed with enjoyable anecdotes to underline his practical lessons. Where Henry really shines is his ability to communicate the issues of clarity of purpose, empathy, accountability, and empowering teams to make decisions. The book includes stories of setbacks and innovation, showing how to stay grounded yet bold. The story of how Henry and other managers padlocked the sales people’s chairs together one night, to emphasise the point the next morning that they needed to get out of the office to see customers, still makes me smile. Would many businesses promote that kind of behaviour today? Henry’s ability to get teams working together is legendary. Even today, Admiral still has a ‘Ministry of Fun’, designed to create an enjoyable work environment as Henry strongly believes happy staff gets better business results. Definitely worth reading for new or seasoned managers. I have seldom met anyone with such a high EQ - this book will challenge your beliefs and behaviours and just written with so much enthusiasm. (Here’s an interesting factoid about Henry that isn’t well known: Despite having retired from Admiral in May 2016, he still mentors over 15 people at Admiral. That’s team building.). I still refer to this book every now and then as it has useful sections for most business situations.

Paper Lion- Confessions of a Last String Quarterback

I was recommended Paper Lion by a friend called Ben. If you like sports this is THE best sports reportage I have read. Mid 1960s, a thirty something journalist “built along the lines of a stick”, George Plimpton, persuades the Detroit Lions to let him attend pre-season training camp as a back-up quarterback and participate in a pre-season game. What were the Lions thinking?! It’s a warts and all account but is so beautifully written and brings out all the weird and wonderful characters on an American football team: the cocky offensive linemen, the brutal defence and the hard drinking and gambling coaches. From a personal perspective, very soon into the book I found I was so invested in George actually getting to the pre-season game and having some playing time. Whatever your sport, who hasn’t thought about training with the elite for a few months. Could you cut the mustard? Or at least not embarrass yourself? You don’t need to be a gridiron fan to appreciate this book; its so good. If ever I go to an NFL game, I would love to see the Detroit Lions and cheer for all the George Plimpton’s of this world. Go Lions !
Interesting factoid: George Plimpton participated in other professional sports as a journalist including golf (the Bogey Man), baseball (Out of My League) and boxing (Shadow Box)! All come highly rated so I will be reading one of these next.

Stay Curious.

Simon

My friend and former colleague Mark Wharrier often reminds me that one of the most valuable skills in investing is pattern recognition. This is spotting the familiar clues that have preceded success or failure in the past. It’s amazing how often these indicators reoccur but in different situations. As Mark Twain said, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” The more highs and lows we’ve experienced when analysing individual companies as well as the wider stock market’s vagaries, the better perspective we gain on our own investing challenges or opportunities. Biographies offer a wonderful window into such historical situations.

Biographies remind us that most companies are like swans: graceful on the surface but paddling furiously underneath. There are always fires to fight, staff to motivate, and irrational competitors to handle. Nothing is ever quite as good or as bad as it looks.

Beyond the business mechanics, autobiographies especially, illuminate temperament — how people think under pressure, manage emotion, and recover from setbacks. You see not only the decisions they made, but how they made them: when to act boldly, when to wait, and when humility or restraint proved decisive. Often, the most enduring lessons come from failure, not triumph. Seeing how others endured reversals, and rebuilt, gives us perspective when markets inevitably turn against us.

A good biography can also serve as a virtual mentor. You can learn from the decisions others made and ask yourself, what would they do here? Charlie Munger even went as far as advising putting photos of people you admire in your office as a motivational tool. This creates a constant, visual reminder of your role models, which encourages you to uphold the standards you associate with them. Would you want to disappoint Charlie?

Biographies from some of the most successful people in history, whether founders, leaders or politicians, are littered with practical advice. All it costs is the price of the book, or even better, it’s free if you use a library. Take this excerpt from Sam Walton’s Made in America:

“Now, I want you to raise your right hand—and remember what we say at Wal-Mart, that a promise we make is a promise we keep—and I want you to repeat after me: From this day forward, I solemnly promise and declare that every time a customer comes within ten feet of me, I will smile, look him in the eye, and greet him. So help me Sam.”

The pledge cost nothing, yet Walton believed greeting customers would “work magic” for both employees and customers. That pledge, total focus on the customer, teamwork and cost consciousness created a retail behemoth with over 10,000 stores globally. It’s a great example of how great leaders turn small ideas into enduring culture.

And finally, many of these books are simply cracking good reads. You finish them feeling energised, encouraged, and a little wiser. As Walt Disney said, “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.”

Subscribe now

Recommendations

Each week I will list two business related biographies and a book from an ‘other’ category. There is a short precis of each one after the list. I hope you enjoy them.

Here are some of my favourites*:

You can click on the links above and in the text below which takes you to relevant Amazon page. Being transparent I will earn a small commission, but I hope you won’t mind.

Week 1 Picks

Made in America – Sam Walton

A brilliant autobiography, packed full of great advice and such fun to read, Made in America by Sam Walton is the story of the Walmart founder. charting his journey from a small-town retailer to the head of one of the world’s largest retail empires. Written in an enjoyable plainspoken, energetic style, the book captures Sam’s relentless drive for efficiency, low prices, and customer satisfaction (“there is only one boss, the customer”). Sam recounts how he built Walmart through a mix of frugality, innovation, and a deep understanding of small-town America. I learned so much from this book about importance of teamwork, employee empowerment (“associates”), and an obsession with keeping costs down – this has fed into my appreciation of lowest cost providers as an enduring investment theme. Beyond recounting business successes, Sam Walton offers insights into his personal values—hard work, optimism, a willingness to learn from mistakes and sharing the success with others: “Share your profits with all your associates, and treat them as partners. In turn, they will treat you as a partner, and together you will all perform beyond your wildest expectations”. If there is one thing you will take from this book its Sam’s work ethic – it was just phenomenal! If you read one autobiography this year, make this is it.

Be a Better Boss (in print) / Think Lead Succeed (out of print)

Think Lead Succeed and its successor Be a Better Boss, blend autobiography, leadership philosophy, and practical lessons through Henry Engelhardt’s experience founding and leading Admiral Insurance. Henry recounts how he and a small team transformed a car insurance start-up into one of the UK’s most admired (and profitable) insurers, emphasizing culture, trust, and continuous learning. It’s not exactly your standard management book, but then again Henry isn’t your standard CEO. The book is really well written, packed with enjoyable anecdotes to underline his practical lessons. Where Henry really shines is his ability to communicate the issues of clarity of purpose, empathy, accountability, and empowering teams to make decisions. The book includes stories of setbacks and innovation, showing how to stay grounded yet bold. The story of how Henry and other managers padlocked the sales people’s chairs together one night, to emphasise the point the next morning that they needed to get out of the office to see customers, still makes me smile. Would many businesses promote that kind of behaviour today? Henry’s ability to get teams working together is legendary. Even today, Admiral still has a ‘Ministry of Fun’, designed to create an enjoyable work environment as Henry strongly believes happy staff gets better business results. Definitely worth reading for new or seasoned managers. I have seldom met anyone with such a high EQ - this book will challenge your beliefs and behaviours and just written with so much enthusiasm. (Here’s an interesting factoid about Henry that isn’t well known: Despite having retired from Admiral in May 2016, he still mentors over 15 people at Admiral. That’s team building.). I still refer to this book every now and then as it has useful sections for most business situations.

Paper Lion- Confessions of a Last String Quarterback

I was recommended Paper Lion by a friend called Ben. If you like sports this is THE best sports reportage I have read. Mid 1960s, a thirty something journalist “built along the lines of a stick”, George Plimpton, persuades the Detroit Lions to let him attend pre-season training camp as a back-up quarterback and participate in a pre-season game. What were the Lions thinking?! It’s a warts and all account but is so beautifully written and brings out all the weird and wonderful characters on an American football team: the cocky offensive linemen, the brutal defence and the hard drinking and gambling coaches. From a personal perspective, very soon into the book I found I was so invested in George actually getting to the pre-season game and having some playing time. Whatever your sport, who hasn’t thought about training with the elite for a few months. Could you cut the mustard? Or at least not embarrass yourself? You don’t need to be a gridiron fan to appreciate this book; its so good. If ever I go to an NFL game, I would love to see the Detroit Lions and cheer for all the George Plimpton’s of this world. Go Lions !
Interesting factoid: George Plimpton participated in other professional sports as a journalist including golf (the Bogey Man), baseball (Out of My League) and boxing (Shadow Box)! All come highly rated so I will be reading one of these next.

Stay Curious.

Simon

Curious Compounder Goodwin Sept 2025

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Family Fortunes was a classic 1980s TV game show where two families compete against each other to amass enough points to get the chance to win the “Big Money” prize. Scores were based on providing the most popular answers to questions asked to one hundred members of the public. An example might be to “name the most famous company in Stoke?”. The top answers, “Our survey says..Bet365” or Wedgwood, would garner the most points. On the other hand, answering “Goodwin” might score a few points but not the jackpot.

It is not surprising. Goodwin is a 140 year old, family controlled, world leading, manufacturing company which most people, whether seasoned investors or members of the public, have never heard of. Goodwin focuses on niche industrial segments where it can be the technical leader, protect its know-how with patents, and earn attractive margins. It’s a member of the FTSE 250, but doesn’t court publicity. Only one stockbroker writes an annual note, but with no forecasts in it. Yet despite all this, Goodwin is 8th best performer in the FTSE All Share over the past 20 years, returning 3100%.

It is clearly doing something right.

The first half of the note concentrates on Goodwin’s two divisions, Mechanical Engineering (68% profits) and Refractory Engineering (32% of profits). It will delve into their drivers and the reorientation of the Group’s Mechanical Engineering activities since 2016. In particular, the pivot towards defence and nuclear contracts, which has elevated Group profitability and returns on capital, with more to come.

The second half focuses on two developments : Goodwin’s super plastics initiative Duvelco and potential customer funded developments in the Mechanical Engineering division. Together with improved gross margins in the order book, these could more than double the Group’s profitability over the next 5 to 10 years. This note aims to put some numbers on both initiatives and gives readers a glimpse into Goodwin’s future. In particular the Group has yet to even mention the Newstead development in its Annual Report or via RNS despite its planning consultant’s plnning submission estimating “large investment into the local economy, circa £150 million project”.

I believe readers will see how differentiated Goodwin is compared to other companies: the long-term approach to management provided by the Goodwin family’s 54% ownership, the commitment to investment in physical and human capital and willingness to innovate and take calculated risks

With all this in mind, is it time to play for “Big Money” ?

What do Costco, Ryanair, Amazon and Wise have in common? Each built scale by giving customers more for less, reinvesting savings back into lower prices and better service. In just over a decade, Wise has gone from two friends swapping currencies to a business with 16m customers transferring £145bn annually and entrusted with over £20bn of customer deposits. The operational leverage gained from sending greater volumes over a mostly fixed cost base and net interest earned on customer balances, means that Wise is emerging as one of the most compelling low-cost compounders in global finance.

Wise’s model is simple but powerful: It charges customers low, transparent fees (averaging 0.52%) combined with a technology platform which enables customers to send money almost instantly around the world. This is supported by a relentless drive to strip out costs by adding more direct integrations with domestic payment networks. All of which has allowed Wise to undercut traditional banks, which may charge eight to ten times more for the same service. The financial results are impressive. Group income (revenue plus net interest earned) has compounded at 45% pa over 6 years; gross margins have expanded more than ten percentage points to over 70%; and the group now generates a return on equity of 30% — arguably closer to 60%, if net cash of £1.3bn were optimised.

Wise has also broadened beyond transfers. It has introduced the Wise Account, which allows customers to hold and spend 40 currencies via a Visa-backed debit card; started paying interest on customer balances; and launched Wise Platform, which embeds its infrastructure into banks and fintechs. These additions both deepen customer stickiness and diversify revenues: commissions, card fees and interchange generated £1.2bn in FY25, while net interest income added a further £400m.

The key to Wise’s strategy is reinvestment: scale advantages are consistently recycled into lower prices and better service, creating a flywheel of growth. Like other great low-cost models, this “scale economies shared” approach underpins customer advocacy — two-thirds of new customers are recruited via recommendation.

This note aims to examine Wise’s business model: explaining why direct connections are so important, comparing it with other enduring low-cost compounders, highlighting aspects of its culture, and clarifying the differences between reported and “underlying” income. Valuation is considered at the end. At just under 30x forecast March 2026 earnings, Wise demands patience — but for investors who can wait, the long runway of growth and compounding economics could make it a very rewarding holding.

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Wise Plc Substack

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Disclosure: I own some Wise plc shares. This note should not in any way be construed as financial advice. The purpose of The Curious Compounder is to inform subscribers about interesting companies. I’m grateful for all feedback, especially any negatives or bear points that I may have missed.

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I love investing

I have been fortunate to be a full time investor of over 25 years, of which I spent 17 years at BlackRock covering UK equities. I have also worked at Aviva and AXA IM and started a small, but proftable investor relations consultancy. I am still at Foresight, but part time, which gives me the opportunity to put my own thoughts on paper.

Deep-dives

Primarily I will post deep-dives about listed companies, but may also write thought pieces on investing related topics. I aim to draw together what I have learned from other successful companies, founders and management teams and apply this to the companies in question. If I have a soft spot, its for owner-managed / founder-led businesses. They just make better long term decisions. At the start I will cover more UK listed companies (given my background), but over time I expect to branch out.

As they say, the world is my oyster.

What interests me?

I love all aspects of investing: the research, studying corporate culture, trying to understand the motivations of the management team, applying lessons learnt in one area to another, needing patience. Add on lashings of market psychology (fear & greed) and it makes for the most interesting career. Hopefully what I write will be of interest to both professional and private investor.

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Feedback

I’m grateful for all feedback, especially any negatives or bear points that I may have missed.

Many thanks and stay curious

Simon Young

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