A couple weeks ago, Akram released a short thesis on Yalla, calling out an odd business model and then some major issues with the platform - duplicative accounts, low engagement, glitches with the gifting model, etc.
On this week's episode we recap that short thesis for those who haven't heard it yet, but then we also go into the aftermath. What's it like to have another short report come out in the same week? Where are the bulls? What about that buyback announcement? And where can this go?
Topics Covered- 4:00 minute mark – Background on the Yala case
- 7:15 -How Yala works
- 13:30 – The content creation red flags
- 18:30 – What's the deal with gifting?
- 25:00 – The circle that won't square
- 32:00 – Thoughts when another short (or three) enters the debate
- 37:30 – Lack of bulls and the company response
- 43:15 – Where does this go from here?
- 49:00 - An alternative playbook
- 54:30 - The state of shorting and why this one is different
- Akram's Razor's presentation on Yalla - https://www.dropbox.com/s/wntrsycechmyxj9/YallaPrez.pdf?dl=0 and update - https://www.dropbox.com/s/y4wihdy3f7zjz6a/Yalla%20FollowUp.pdf?dl=0
- Swan Street Research's presentation on Yalla - https://www.swanstreetresearch.com/post/swan-street-is-short-yalla-group
- Yalla's press releases in repsonse: Standard refutation - https://seekingalpha.com/pr/18325971-yalla-group-limited-responds-to-short-attack-reports - and stock buyback announcement - https://seekingalpha.com/pr/18328269-yalla-group-limited-announces-up-to-us-150-million-share-repurchase-program
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