Money & Taxes

What does it mean when a company is "worth $60 billion"? Did somebody pay that much? Is the money sitting in a bank account? And who decided on that number? In October 2026, Ramp announced a $60 billion valuation. To understand what a headline like that means, we follow Robo, his small invoicing-software company and one investor: $100,000 for 10% ownership, a "million-dollar valuation" – and a personal bank account that doesn't change at all. We look at revenue vs. profit vs. company value, pre-money and post-money, where investment money actually goes, why investors pay for the future, who decides the price, why private shares are hard to turn into cash, and how stock-market value can vanish without money leaving a bank account.

"They take half your money in tax!" – but half of what? In episode 3 of our tax series, Robo follows the money from what a job costs an employer to what actually reaches the worker's bank account. We explain the tax wedge with a simple made-up example, compare ten OECD countries for 2025 (single worker, no children, average wage, % of total labour cost), and show why the number changes with the household, what it leaves out (like Switzerland's compulsory health-insurance premiums), what the payments fund – and why VAT and the cost of living are a separate story.

Remember when streaming felt cheap? In the U.S., Disney+ launched in 2019 at $6.99 a month without ads – in 2026, its ad-free price for new subscribers reached $21.49. So what happened? We follow the money: cheap prices to grow, expensive content, more and more services, the return of ads, bundles – and why streaming is starting to look a bit like cable again.

Robo pays 120 for a pair of headphones – and 20 of that is VAT. So why does the shop only send 10 to the government? Nothing has disappeared. In this episode we follow the money backwards through a parts supplier, a manufacturer and a shop, and see how VAT is collected in pieces along the way – and why the chain stops at the customer.

You earn money – taxed. You spend it – taxed again. You own a home – another bill? Follow Robo through an ordinary day and see what each tax is actually based on: income, purchases, business profits, property and transfers. Then a quick look at history (Britain 1799, France 1954, India 2017) and the side most comparisons forget: what the money pays for.

Why is everything still so expensive, even when inflation falls? Robo uses three shopping receipts to explain lower inflation, high prices and buying power.