V
VISA Inc.
stock NYSE

Es ist wirklich ein Problem jeden Tag nur Nachrichten zu lesen, die einem sagen. Hier geht alles den Bach runter. V****** dich hier. As soon as possible.

Sorry, just thought that that "U" looked like a "V", but I guess that's really the way they made them.

First thing is I only trade companies that I understand what they do and how they make the majority of their money. Next, I am a Fidelity customer so I use their resources and check what the analysts recommendations are. If they don’t align with my view I try to see what I am missing. I also use their screener to filter on the major variables that others have listed but am not strict on those unless some negative really stands out. I also read or listen to their earnings calls and have alerts set for any news on their tickers.
I picked up AMAT a few months ago and had a good understanding of their business and have done really well with it, wish I had trusted myself enough to hold through earnings overnight. My other tickers that I have done well with here and there are V, GS, KO, MA, MSFT, COST. I try to avoid holding through earnings because I got burnt with Costco - was 100% right on fundamentals but earnings call comments killed it (“…something, something, something, expect tariff headwinds…”)

EPS, revenue, volume and process transactions all grew at least 8% over last year based on Jan 29 earnings report. If anything, V is doing fine and will have a another great year. But will the stock price reflect that?

This stock is one of the most followed on the tsx. Remind me of EMO.V in 2021-2022

I keep seeing HIMS argued like it is one business. For value, I think you have to split it in your head.
There is a real cash pay subscription platform underneath the headlines. Hair, ED, derm, mental health. Recurring revenue, low insurance complexity, brand and distribution that actually exist. That is the asset.
Then there is the GLP1 compounding era. A national funnel built around a regulatory perimeter that was never meant to support mass market distribution at scale. If you are a value buyer, you do not have to debate the politics of compounding. You have to decide whether you are willing to underwrite a business that just learned what happens when a revenue line sits on the edge of enforcement posture.
So the value question becomes this: what is Business A worth as a standalone if Business B shrinks hard or goes close to zero.
The reason I start there is unit economics. Subscriber growth is not the point if the economics under each subscriber drift the wrong way. You do not need subs to collapse to get a permanent rerate. You just need the platform to get more expensive to grow.
From public reporting I have seen cited in the filings and earnings materials, non GLP ARPU dropped from roughly $60 to $55 in a single quarter in Q2 2025. Blended ARPU fell from roughly $84 to $74 over the same period. Marketing spend was about $218M in Q2 2025 against roughly 73,000 net new subs, which is about $3,000 per marginal add. Gross margin moved from roughly 82% in FY2023 to roughly 74% by Q3 2025. Mix and fulfillment complexity doing what they always do to high margin platform narratives.
None of that says the core is worthless. It says the core needs to prove it can acquire and retain profitably when headlines are negative and CAC wants to rise. If you are underwriting owner earnings, this matters more than vibes about subscriber count.
Now the part value investors cannot ignore: the capital structure clock.
HIMS has about $1B in zero coupon convertible notes due May 2030 with a conversion price around $70.67. With the stock far below that, those notes behave like cash debt, not equity dilution. The company has reported about $1.1B cash. In a clean scenario with roughly $300M a year free cash flow, you can tell a story where the maturity is manageable. In a downside scenario where free cash flow compresses into the $100M to $150M range, the same maturity turns into an overhang that forces capital allocation decisions you might not like as an equity holder. It is not bankruptcy math today. It is a future constraint that raises your required discount rate right now.
Governance is the other value filter. HIMS is effectively controlled by the CEO through a dual class structure. Class A gets one vote. Class V gets 175 votes. Roughly 88% of voting power sits with the controller group. That does not make the business bad. It changes what you can assume about course correction. Concentrated control makes outcomes more binary. When it works, it is fast. When it does not, there is no one to pull the brake.
So where do I land as a value lens, not a trade.
I am not interested in valuing GLP1 growth stories or debating regulatory optics. I am interested in whether the core subscription platform has durable owner earnings at a normalized CAC, and what multiple it deserves when you haircut the growth narrative and price in a higher risk premium from control structure and legal overhang.
If you are bullish from a value angle, the clean way to argue it is not that the company has millions of subscribers. It is that the core can sustain a stable contribution margin per subscriber after a year of negative headlines, and that normalized free cash flow can cover reinvestment needs while keeping the 2030 maturity non disruptive.
One question for value people here: if you assume GLP1 revenue contribution goes close to zero and CAC stays higher than the pre headline period, what do you think normalized free cash flow looks like for the core, and what multiple would you pay for that given the 88% control structure and the 2030 maturity constraint.
Disclosure: no position. Public info only. Not investment advice.

Is anyone here in Zoomd (ZOMD.V)? I see nobody talking about it at all. P/E 4.27

Market Analysis: Visa (V) Hits Critical Support as Institutional "Smart Money" Defends $310 Floor
NEW YORK, NY — February 14, 2026 — Independent market analysis released today suggests that Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) has entered "fundamentally oversold" territory following a 3.11% drop on February 13. Despite regulatory headwinds, technical data and institutional buying patterns point toward a potential mid-term reversal.
The Divergence of Price and Profit
While Visa shares have faced a 7.5% year-to-date decline, the company recently reported a record $3.17 EPS, representing 15% year-over-year growth. This decoupling has pushed Visa’s forward P/E ratio to 24.4x, roughly 11% below its five-year historical average.
Institutional Support Levels
Data indicates that institutional investors, including Vanguard and BlackRock, continue to hold over 82% of the float. Technical analysis identifies a "hard floor" at the $310.00 - $314.00 zone, coinciding with the 200-day moving average. Notably, Friday’s sell-off occurred on low volume (4.15M shares vs. 9.39M average), suggesting a lack of conviction among sellers.
The $30 Billion Catalyst
Visa’s aggressive $30 billion share repurchase program remains a primary driver for long-term value. By reducing share supply at these discounted levels, the company is effectively "buying the dip" alongside its largest shareholders, providing a significant safety net against further downside.
Conclusion
While the "Credit Card Competition Act" presents a headline risk, the consensus among 37 analysts remains a "Strong Buy" with an average price target of $402.58, implying a 25% upside from current levels.
Disclaimer: This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Data as of Feb 14, 2026.

V for Vendetta?

**Everything purchased and paid for today will be shipped out on TUESDAY (Monday is federal holiday)**
**Please be warned that I will never send you unsolicited messages offering to sell something that is not part of this sale.**
**I use 2FA and will not share my password, don't waste your time**
Please send me Chat, would prefer not to use DMs any longer
___
[**PROOF FOR EVERYTHING**](https://imgur.com/a/vsgvYBh)
Everything is priced with AU spot @$5043 and AG spot @$77.43 and Pt @$2071 (Kitco quotes)
I use custom poured silver bar made by u/420pepe in my verification photos, I think you should too! :)
___
**NEW STUFF!!**
1945 Mexico 2.5 Pesos - $315 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/caLEJ2K)
1909 France 20 Francs - $955 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/x43H1je)
1919-P UK Sovereign - $1200 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/tID8xVF)
2016 Gold Mercury Dime - $575. Brand new in OGP | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/X4ZADAe)
2016 Gold Standing Liberty Quarter - $1375. Brand new in OGP | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/5KWR5hC)
1945 Walking Liberty 50c MS65 - $105. Some toning | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/84qAK9w)
1946 Iowa Centennial 50c MS65 - $130 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/RhrTaqh)
1934 Maryland Commemorative 50c MS64 - $210. Very nice coin in OGH | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/K96YesS)
1924-D Standing Liberty 25c MS65 - $525. Blast white attractive coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/5oqLq1S)
1914-D Barber 25c MS62 - $300. Blast white attractive coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/lJ6cLb1)
1916 Barber 10c MS63 - $180 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/sX27Y05)
1853 Seated Half Dollar Arrows and Rays - $130. Nice coin for someone's album | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/V7j04ln)
**BELOW MELT!!** Raw Morgans Lot of 5 - $290. All different dates/mintmarks | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/n1aaQk1)
[**BARBER QUARTERS $5FV GRAB BAG**](https://imgur.com/a/Y4lq4D3)
Yours for $300 each, 2 bags available. All coins are hand sorted, nothing dateless/holed/bent, you will receive the exact coins in the picture
___
**GOLD!!**
1909 Denmark 10 Kroner MS65 - $725. Great example of old gold, semi-PL coin. It's .1296 AGW | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/wHT3oai)
1882 Italy 20 Lire - $990. Sealed in vintage Italian wallet-type holder, never seen one of these. Coin is semi-PL, please see the video | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1882-italy-20-lire-cWv3otV)
1903 McKinley Louisiana Purchase G$1 MS65 - $750. Beautiful gem | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/Rcnm1vW)
1849 Open Wreath G$1 AU55 - $500 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/DCRLr36)
1916 Cuba 5 Pesos - $1340. Rare type | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/Et4kyYX)
1904 1/2 Sovereign - $630 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/Gd6jQPn)
1914 1/2 Sovereign - $630 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/d2UAtTD)
**PRICE REDUCED!!**1899 Russia 5 Rubles - ~~$670~~ $650. Nice slightly circulated coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/TlNHpDx)
**PRICE REDUCED!!**1900 Russia 5 Rubles - ~~$670~~ $650. Nice slightly circulated coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/xCMj4E3)
___
**BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!**
1880-S $1 Morgan MS66 - $320. Absolutely spectacular gem, if it was any other date than 80-S it would be called PL :)) | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1880-s-ms66-BJrMN9L)
**PRICE REDUCED!!** **1860-O Seated Liberty Dollar AU55** - ~~$1600~~ $1550. Very wholesome coin with original surfaces, has not been to CAC, might send in if it doesn't sell | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1860-o-1-seated-liberty-dollar-au55-YY4uikJ)
1880-s $1 Morgan MS66 - $245. Maybe not the prettiest 66 Morgan around but sold for the right price, that's for sure :) | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/lraeyZB)
1897 $1 Morgan MS64 - $175. Very attractive obverse toning | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/3GzEMJG)
1898-O $1 Morgan MS65 - $175. Gorgeous blast white coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/6p1PM4a)
1902-S $1 Morgan XF45 - $300. Great coin with a decent amount of luster left, please see the video | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1902-s-1-morgan-xf45-W8b8jQG)
1921-D $1 Morgan MS63 - $250. Tough date to find with color | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/8L4M0Y4)
1886 $1 Morgan MS63 - $110. Toned | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/2ywrxUa)
1969 Guinea 250 Francs Lunar Landing PR67DCAM - $100. Can't find any completed besides one alleged one from 2022 but that seems insane. I've included a few active ones, my price should be reasonable enough. Comes with TrueViews | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/Eitt1Lr)
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1831 Capped Bust Half Dollar XF40 - $250. Very nice coin of popular type | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/qhhMmxP)
1922 Grant Memorial Half Dollar No Star - $300. Attractive example of popular classic commem | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1922-grant-50c-ms64-OxLz17d)
1903-O Barber Quarter G4 - $35 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/e6UEIY3)
1928-D Standing Liberty 25c F15 - $45. Tough to find a straight graded lower grade (pop 2 in this grade). Comes with TrueViews | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/Rh4T6v9)
1834 Capped Bust Dime Large 4 G4 - $50. Neat little type coin, tough to see graded | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/ZBoVNql)
1820 Capped Bust 25c VG8 - $185. Affordable example of popular design. I believe this is medium 0 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1820-capped-25c-vg8-MFiJWgT)
1835 Capped Bust 25c VF20 - $170. Affordable example of popular design, nice looking coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1835-capped-25c-3XyoVam)
____
**RAW COINS!!**
1847 Seated Liberty $1 - $225. Holed but very affordable. Lots of detail on this one | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/cUeeGGO)
**1827 Capped Bust 50c** - $80. Nice coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/IlaUS32)
1875-S 20 Cents - $150 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/NIO98Jh)
1891-CC $1 Morgan - $125. Attractive example, I think it has a slight bend but I can't catch it in pictures, it's very slight, perfect album coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/2m1u16u)
1890-CC $1 Morgan - $325. Nice reverse colors, I would grade it AU Details | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1890-cc-1-morgan-vNea1Ks)
1825 Capped Bust Quarter - $145. Honest wear, affordable type coin | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/1825-capped-bust-quarter-miz5bo1)
1935 Canada $1 Unc Details - $95. Maybe there's a touch of cleaning on reverse or maybe NGC is just being jerks, you decide. Very attractive coin regardless | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/5C5ZSTk)
1935 George V Silver Jubilee Crown - $50 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/krxBfx9)
1913 Germany 3 Marks - Defeat of Napoleon 100th Anniversary - $45 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/XU5aRdx)
Foreign coins from around the world - $50. From imperial Russia to Ceylon, to Hong Kong and South Africa, cool mix. Canada 1903 5 cents is a bit damaged so throwing it in for free. | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/oAnu5FC)
Russian Empire Lot - 3 coins of different years/denomination in the lot, $25 for all 3 | [**ALBUM**](https://imgur.com/a/russian-lot-2-rBJPzLi)
___
**Shipping at cost** - First Class (aka Ground Advantage) starts at $5, Priority at $9.50. If you would like insurance (Cost is $1 per $100 of value of the package) or signature (+$3.50) this will be extra. Please let me know if you want any of these extra services. I pack safely and discretely, and ship fast. All paid for purchases will be on their way **NEXT BUSINESS DAY**
Payments are accepted via **PPFF** (Sorry, I do not accept G&S payments anymore) or **Zelle**. If you are a trusted buyer/seller I can accept Venmo (sorry, no Venmo for newer users). USPS money order is cool too. I can no longer accept CashApp

V shaped recovery

VRIC 2026 Takeaways: Pacific Ridge ($PEX.V) — Defined Scale at Kliyul (334 Mt Resource), 2026 Expansion Drilling & RDP High-Grade Hits

Does V day matter as much? Even after marriage?

It’s pretty funny that today ended in such a massive reverse V

The V is upside down!

We really need to know what you did? I am caught holding MSFT stock because I thought it hit a bottom and bought what I thought would V. Then it crashed again. Down $15 a share. Looks horrible on paper but is not really a catastrophe.
Perhaps your failure is the same? Or did you do 0DTE options?

V shaped recovery on the VIX. I hate these pieces of shit so much

Last week, I posted an article that showed Bill Gates' peak wealth was 2X larger than Elon Musk's when measured in gold. That got me thinking. What happens when you go beyond America and start comparing modern billionaires to the kings and emperors who controlled entire civilizations?
The short answer: Musk and Gates get destroyed. It's not even close. Akbar was 3.3X richer than Gates and emperor Shenzong is 5.5X richer than Musk.

**The Metric: Why Gold?**
Comparing a tech CEO to an emperor who ruled in 1600 AD is tricky. Dollars didn't exist back then. You know what did? Gold. It is the one asset class that has been used as money-like across nearly every era and civilization, making it the best available unit for cross-historical comparison.
When you measure wealth in gold ounces, the number doesn't shift every time the dollar moves. Augustus is worth \~413 million ounces whether gold trades at $5000 or $1,000. This avoid the conflict of someone saying his peak wealth is worth $400B 10 years ago but $2T today so he is richer. I think we can all agree that the wealth of a billionaire 100 years ago is not the same as a billionaire 100 years from now.
**The Model: Valuing Sovereign Wealth**
The harder problem is figuring out what a sovereign ruler was actually worth. There's limited data on how much physical assets a king kept in his treasury. But honestly, that misses the point anyway. The most valuable thing a ruler possessed wasn't gold sitting in a vault. It was his people. The population was the source of his power and wealth creation through taxes, tribute, and economic activity. The more people under his control, the more wealth he could extract. To capture this, I developed a financial model that treats an empire like a massive corporation and the sovereign ruler as its CEO and majority owner. I call this the **Sovereign Asset Valuation Engine (SAVE)** model. It is how every number you see in the table is derived.
For transparency, as I am sure there will be a lot of questions, let me walk through the SAVE model so you can see what drives sovereign wealth and why the numbers are what they are.
**The SAVE Model Explained**
The core idea is simple. A ruler's total wealth has two parts: the ongoing value of his empire's economy (what it produces year after year) and whatever hard assets he has stockpiled (gold in the treasury, royal lands, war plunder). In finance terms, this is the same logic used to value a company. You take the recurring cash flows, capitalize them into a lump sum, and then add the balance sheet assets on top.
The formula:
**Total Wealth (in gold ounces) = (Operating Value: N x B x V x M x K) + (Hard Assets: L + R + E)**
The left side of the formula (N x B x V x M x K) represents the **operating value** of the empire. Think of it as the "enterprise value" of the sovereign's tax machine. The right side (L + R + E) represents **hard assets**, the physical wealth the ruler actually held.
Here is what each variable means:
**Operating Value Variables**
* **N (Population):** The total number of productive people in the territory. This is the single biggest driver of sovereign wealth. An emperor ruling 150 million people will outrank one ruling 10 million, all else being equal.
* **B (Economic Base):** The annual economic output per person, measured in gold ounces. This is scaled by era and economic sophistication. A highly commercialized empire like the Mughal Empire in 1600 under Akbar (B = 1.60) scores higher than an ancient agrarian economy like Rome under Augustus (B = 0.80) in 14 AD. This variable captures how productive the average person was relative to the complexity of the economy around them.
* **V (Velocity):** How frequently wealth changes hands in the economy. This ranges from 2.0 for a basic subsistence economy (farmers mostly feeding themselves) up to 8.0 for a highly commercialized or paper-money economy with active trade. Rome with its Mediterranean shipping lanes and professional merchant class scores higher than, say, early medieval Europe. This variable captures the difference between a sleepy agrarian kingdom and a bustling trade empire.
* **M (Extraction Margin):** The percentage of the economy the ruler captures through taxes, monopolies, tribute, and forced labor. A professional Roman tax system might extract 10%. The Mughal Empire under Akbar, with its highly centralized land revenue system, extracted significantly more at 16%. This is the sovereign equivalent of a company's profit margin.
* **K (Capitalization Multiple):** A multiplier applied to the annual extracted income that converts a yearly cash flow into a lump-sum wealth figure, just like a P/E ratio does for a stock. A 20x multiple implies the ruler (or his dynasty) can sustain that income for roughly 20 years, which is reasonable for a stable empire at its peak.
**Hard Asset Variables**
* **L (Liquid Treasury):** Physical gold, silver, and gems held in the ruler's vaults.
* **R (Real Estate):** The value of directly owned royal lands, palaces, and estates.
* **E (Extraordinary Gains):** One-time wealth injections from conquest, ransoms, or plunder. Think of the seizure of Egypt's Ptolemaic treasury or the sacking of a rival capital.
**Quick Example: Augustus Caesar**
To make this concrete, here is how Augustus scores:
|Variable|Value|Why|
|:-|:-|:-|
|N (Population)|55,000,000|Moderate estimate for the Roman Empire at Augustus's death in 14 AD, based on a scholarly range of 44-60 million|
|B (Economic Base)|0.80 oz|Advanced for the ancient world but still primarily agrarian, with significant regional inequality across provinces|
|V (Velocity)|4.5|Strong Mediterranean maritime trade, standardized tri-metallic coinage (aureus, denarius, sestertius), and 50,000 miles of paved roads|
|M (Margin)|0.10|Professional Roman tax system estimated at 5-7% of GDP, plus customs duties, mining revenues, and provincial tribute|
|K (Multiple)|20x|Highly stable empire at peak, clear succession to Tiberius, Pax Romana lasted 200 years after Augustus|
|L (Treasury)|200,000 oz|Augustus spent heavily throughout his reign investing in public works, soldier settlements, and rebuilding Rome. Historical accounts confirm little remained in the treasury at his death|
|R (Real Estate)|5,000,000 oz|Egypt as personal imperial estate, gold and silver mines in Spain and Romania, crown lands across provinces|
|E (Extra Gains)|10,000,000 oz|Conquest of Egypt in 30 BC seized the Ptolemaic treasury, one of the largest single wealth transfers in ancient history|
**Operating Value:** 55M x 0.80 x 4.5 x 0.10 x 20 = **396,000,000 oz**
**Hard Assets:** 200,000 + 5,000,000 + 10,000,000 = **15,200,000 oz**
**Total Wealth:** 411 million gold ounces (**$2.0 trillion at $4,900/oz)**
The key point is that the gold figure never changes. Whether gold is $2,900 or $5,000 per ounce, Augustus holds steady at \~411 million ounces. That is what makes this ranking stable over time. Dollar-based rankings shift every year. Gold-based rankings do not.
**Addressing the Rankings That Will Raise Eyebrows**
I know some of the figures above will be questioned and debatable, so let me explain the ones I think will come up.
**Genghis Khan vs. Mansa Musa**
Most lists put Mansa Musa at #1 and Genghis Khan in the top five, often ahead of Musa in terms of territorial control. In the SAVE model, Mansa Musa ranks #9 with 209 million gold ounces, while Genghis Khan ranks #10 with 207 million gold ounces. Close, but both are far from the top.
Why? Because wealth under this model is not about how much land you conquer. It is about how effectively you monetize an economy.
Genghis Khan controlled an empire of 60 million people across 24 million square kilometers. That is three times the population of Mansa Musa's Mali Empire. But the Mongol Empire was fundamentally a military operation, not a fiscal one. The Mongols did not build sophisticated tax collection systems. Conquered territories were often pillaged and left without administrative infrastructure. Economic velocity was low because the empire stretched across vast, sparsely populated steppes with limited urban centers and trade networks relative to its size. The extraction margin was also low. Soldiers were banned from taking personal loot, and the spoils were distributed across the military hierarchy.
Mansa Musa, by contrast, sat on the world's richest gold deposits and controlled the trans-Saharan trade routes. His empire was smaller but economically dense. The extraction margin was higher because gold mining was a state enterprise. His famous 1324 pilgrimage to Mecca, where he distributed so much gold that he crashed the Egyptian economy for a decade, was not just a display of piety. It was a demonstration of liquid wealth that no Mongol khan could match.
In corporate terms: Genghis Khan was a high-revenue, low-margin conglomerate with integration problems. Mansa Musa was a smaller, high-margin monopoly with a dominant market position in the most valuable commodity on earth.
Due to the same logic, this is why Mansa Musa cannot overtake a sophisticated empire with 100M+ people such as Akbar the Great or Emperor Shenzong. He doesn't have enough people under his rule.
**Pope Alexander VI: The Power of Extraction**
Perhaps the most surprising entry on the list is Pope Alexander VI at #12. He is valued at 155 million gold ounces and a population of just 3 million.
On paper, this makes no sense. How does a ruler and Pope of 3 million people even make it on the list? Why him and no other pope?
The answer is extraction margin. Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) did not just govern the Papal States. He wielded the authority of the Catholic Church over all of Western Christendom. That authority translated into massive revenue streams: tithes, indulgences, simony (the sale of church offices), and direct payments from monarchs seeking papal favor or annulment. His extraction margin was extraordinarily high relative to his direct population.
He also used his position aggressively to enrich his family, the Borgias, through land grants, military campaigns funded by church revenues, and political marriages that consolidated wealth and territory across Italy and Spain. He was not a spiritual leader but a king.
In valuation terms, Alexander VI is the equivalent of a platform business. His direct "headcount" was small, but his monetization reach extended far beyond his territorial borders. While his direct population was only 3 million, his spiritual and financial authority extended across roughly 100 million people in Latin Christendom. The capitalization multiple on that income stream is high because the papacy as an institution had centuries of continuity, making it one of the most durable "franchises" in history.
**Final Points**
This is not the final word on who was richest. No model can claim that when the underlying data spans 2,000 years of imperfect historical records. What this model does provide is something no existing ranking offers: a consistent, transparent, financially grounded framework where every assumption is visible and adjustable.
If you disagree with the velocity assumption for the Mongol Empire or the extraction margin for the Roman Empire, you can change the inputs and see how the output shifts. That is how valuation works. It is not about finding the "right" answer. It is about building a defensible methodology, being transparent about your assumptions, and letting the framework produce a result that others can challenge, refine, and improve.
Historians rank by narrative. Economists rank by GDP share. As a Finance profession, I built a ranking based on the same valuation logic used in corporate finance. The sovereign ruler is the CEO. The empire is the operating business. And gold is the only currency that doesn't lie.
What do you think of the ratings and the explanation of the results? Who do you think should rank as the richest?

What a V!! I mean Λ.

No V yesterday and a reverse V today, it’s so over