Muddy Waters
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersMinneapolis, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Muddy Waters firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Muddy Waters
- Legal name
- Muddy Waters Capital LLC
- Website
- https://muddywatersresearch.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Muddy Waters industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Investment Research
- NAICS
- Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Due Diligence & Investigative Research (BPAHALAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Forensic Accounting & Fraud Investigation (BPAHABAH), Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)
Keywords
Where Muddy Waters is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Minneapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Muddy Waters business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Research Subscriptions: The firm publishes research reports on its website and offers subscription services for receiving reports and related news and updates. Subscribers receive research reports and other related intelligence as they are published.
- Short Position Profits: Muddy Waters generates returns by taking short positions in companies targeted by their research. Upon publication of critical reports, the firm's short positions can increase in value if the stock price declines as anticipated.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Research subscription service providing access to reports and updates |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Muddy Waters product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Muddy Waters publishes due diligence-based investigative equity research reports that expose accounting fraud, misrepresentation, and illegal business practices at publicly traded companies. The firm's research is delivered through a paid subscription service and freely published reports on its website, targeting institutional investors, hedge funds, and retail investors interested in short-selling opportunities.
Product overview
Muddy Waters Research is a due diligence-based equity research firm that publishes investigative short-seller reports on companies suspected of fraud, accounting irregularities, or materially misleading business practices. The firm operates as a single-product research service, producing detailed reports (such as those on ENSG, SRAD, SOFI, APP, FTAI, and ELF) that are distributed through its website and subscription service. The research methodology includes field investigations, undercover operations, document analysis, and interviews with former employees. Carson Block is the founder and primary researcher.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Muddy Waters Research Reports Due diligence-based equity research reports investigating potential fraud, accounting irregularities, and materially misleading business practices at publicly traded companies. Reports are produced through field investigations, undercover operations, document analysis, and former-employee interviews, and are aimed at institutional investors, hedge funds, and retail investors interested in short-selling opportunities.
- Muddy Waters Research Subscription Annual subscription service that delivers Muddy Waters' research reports and related news and updates to subscribers as they are published, providing continuous access to the firm's investigative equity research.
- Submit an Idea Public-facing intake mechanism hosted on the Muddy Waters website through which outside parties can submit research ideas or tips for the firm to investigate, feeding the firm's pipeline of investigative research topics.
Quantifiable outcome
- SoFi Technologies stock declined approximately 50% from November 2025 highs following Muddy Waters short report in March 2026
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Muddy Waters
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Muddy Waters technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Muddy Waters partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Muddy Waters competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hindenburg Research: Founded by Nathan Anderson, Hindenburg is the most prominent contemporary short-seller research firm, publishing investigative reports on alleged corporate fraud that move global equity prices. Directly comparable in mission, methodology, and audience to Muddy Waters.
- Citron Research: Founded by Andrew Left, Citron Research is a long-running short-biased sell-side research firm publishing short theses on U.S. listed equities. Operates a similar subscription + short trading model and targets the same institutional and retail investor audience.
- Iceberg Research: Iceberg Research is an activist short-seller firm that publishes investigative reports on European and global small/mid-cap companies. Operates an essentially identical research-plus-short-position business model and similar primary-source due diligence methodology.
- Scorpion Capital: Scorpion Capital is a short-selling research firm that publishes detailed investigative reports alleging fraud or operational issues at healthcare and consumer companies. Same model — due diligence research, public distribution, and short-side trading profits.
- Kerrisdale Capital: Kerrisdale Capital is a value-oriented investment manager that publishes long and short research on U.S. equities, often with activist or short-thesis reports. Comparable audience of institutional and retail investors and similar research distribution channels.
- Spruce Point Capital Management: Spruce Point Capital publishes short-seller research on companies it believes have accounting, governance, or business model red flags. Operates a very similar subscription + short P&L model and serves the same institutional due-diligence audience.
- Wolfpack Research: Founded by Dan David, Wolfpack Research publishes short-biased investigative reports on U.S. listed companies, particularly Chinese ADRs. Closely comparable target universe (China-linked names) and methodology to Muddy Waters' original focus.
- Bonitas Research: Bonitas Research is a short-biased research firm publishing investigative reports alleging fraud or accounting manipulation at public companies, often in healthcare and emerging markets. Same business model, distribution, and audience.
Emerging players
- Fuzzy Panda Research: Fuzzy Panda Research is a newer short-seller research firm publishing investigative short reports on U.S. and Chinese-listed companies. Comparable niche model but smaller scale and shorter track record than Muddy Waters.
- GlassHouse Research: GlassHouse Research publishes short-seller research on U.S. and Asia-listed companies using primary-source investigative methodology. Operates in the same niche with similar product (subscriber reports + short positions) but a smaller, less established brand.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Muddy Waters social profiles
Digital presenceMuddy Waters financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Muddy Waters leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Muddy Waters funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Muddy Waters M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Muddy Waters
What does Muddy Waters do?
Muddy Waters publishes due diligence-based investigative equity research reports that expose accounting fraud, misrepresentation, and illegal business practices at publicly traded companies. The firm's research is delivered through a paid subscription service and freely published reports on its website, targeting institutional investors, hedge funds, and retail investors interested in short-selling opportunities.
Is Muddy Waters a public or private company?
Muddy Waters is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Muddy Waters founded?
Muddy Waters was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Muddy Waters based?
Muddy Waters is headquartered in Minneapolis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Muddy Waters make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Research Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are short Position Profits.
Who are Muddy Waters's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hindenburg Research, Citron Research, Iceberg Research, Scorpion Capital, Kerrisdale Capital, Spruce Point Capital Management, Wolfpack Research and Bonitas Research. Emerging players are Fuzzy Panda Research and GlassHouse Research.
Does Muddy Waters have an API?
No public API is recorded for Muddy Waters.
What industry is Muddy Waters in?
Muddy Waters's product category is Investment Research. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHALAI, Due Diligence & Investigative Research, with a secondary code of BPAHABAH, Forensic Accounting & Fraud Investigation. Its NAICS code is 523 and its SIC code is 6282.