Most of what gets written about public companies ignores the one question that actually drives long-run returns: how well the company allocates its capital.
The Capital Memo is a weekday newsletter that takes that question seriously. Each morning you get one email, under 2,000 words, covering a specific capital allocation decision through the lens of peer-reviewed academic research. Not opinion. Not pundits. The research itself — plus a concrete deal or buyback or structural shift it illuminates.
The week runs on a fixed cadence. Monday — The Evidence. One research finding, one live deal. Monday connects academic work to something in the news right now. Tuesday — The Scorecard. A public company graded on how it spends money. Organic investment, M&A, buybacks, dividends. Simple framework, honest scores. Wednesday — The Deal Autopsy. One deal, scored through academic research. Size, leverage, timing, strategy — with a predicted outcome and a rescore at 12 and 24 months. Thursday — The Number. One data point that changes how capital gets deployed. Private equity dry powder. Commercial real estate maturities. The number is the hook, the research is the argument. Friday — The Deep Memo. A 2,000-word research essay. Divestitures, buyback timing, merger wave dynamics. The one that gets forwarded.
Who this is for. Operators, CFOs, investors, and analysts who make or evaluate capital allocation decisions for a living. If you already read Mauboussin, Damodaran, the WTW Deal Monitor, and the Kenan Institute quarterlies — you'll recognize the material. If you don't, this is a faster way in.
What you won't find here. No stock picks. No price targets. No predictions about the next Fed move. No commentary on macro noise the research can't actually anchor.
Who writes it. I'm Marques Blank — founder of Blank Capital (fractional CFO and FP&A advisory) and Blank Capital Partners (registered investment advisory). Former Northrop Grumman and Citibank. CMA, MBA, Series 65. The research I cite is from working economists; I just translate it.
What happens next. If you subscribed today, the first real issue will hit your inbox on the next weekday morning. If you want to see one before you commit further, the archive is open — every past issue is available to read. Three recent deep memos to start with: the JPMorgan capital allocation scorecard, the Red Queen problem (why reported capex understates maintenance), and the clock on $1.3 trillion of private equity dry powder.
If you end up forwarding an issue, I'm grateful. That's how this grows.
— Marques