Popstock Educational Services
Popstock Educational Services is a 501(c)(3) non-profit building PopStock, a free stock-market simulation that pairs pop-culture music artists with financial literacy modules to teach underserved U.S. youth investing, budgeting, and risk concepts through schools and alternative learning programs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Popstock Educational Services does
Popstock Educational Services is a New York-based 501(c)(3) non-profit (Tax ID 93-4178952) that builds PopStock, a stock-market simulation software combining pop-culture music artists with trading mechanics to teach financial literacy to underserved American youth. The platform simulates market fluctuations for artist 'stocks' based on real-world events (Billboard performance, album drops, social-media buzz), and pairs the simulation with curriculum-aligned modules (Learning Nuggets, Financial Future Beats) covering budgeting, investing fundamentals, risk assessment, macroeconomics, stop-loss, limit orders, and options trading. A teacher admin panel, class/school/district competition system, and an AI-powered personalized learning module extend the platform toward classroom deployment. The business model relies on a small, undisclosed monthly maintenance-and-support fee from schools for unlimited users, supplemented by federal grants and tax-deductible donations via PayPal, while student access is free with zero advertising; distribution is direct-to-school, starting with a pilot in underserved NYC high schools with stated intent to expand across New York and nationally through alternative learning programs.
Popstock Educational Services firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Popstock Educational Services
- Legal name
- Popstock Educational Services
- Website
- https://popstock.io
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Popstock Educational Services is a 501(c)(3) non-profit building PopStock, a free stock-market simulation that pairs pop-culture music artists with financial literacy modules to teach underserved U.S. youth investing, budgeting, and risk concepts through schools and alternative learning programs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Popstock Educational Services industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Financial Literacy Education Software
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (611710), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Math & Science Interactive Learning Platforms (STEM Core) (EDAFANAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Business Planning, Pitching & Competitions (Pitch Decks, Demo Days) (EDAMAHAB)
Keywords
Where Popstock Educational Services is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Popstock Educational Services business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Donations and Grants: 501(c)(3) non-profit funded primarily through donations and federal grant funding. The founder has invested personal savings. Tax-deductible donations accepted via PayPal.
- School Maintenance and Support Fee: Schools pay a small monthly maintenance and support fee for unlimited users to cover operational costs and server maintenance. The core software remains free for all students.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free Student Access |
| Subscription | Monthly | School Subscription (Monthly Maintenance Fee) |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Popstock Educational Services product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Popstock Educational Services develops PopStock, a free, pop-culture-themed stock market simulation platform that teaches financial literacy to underserved youth. The software combines trading mechanics with music artist "stocks," curriculum-aligned interactive modules, teacher admin dashboards, and inter-school competitions, and is distributed to high schools and alternative learning programs primarily through direct engagement with educational institutions, supported by donations and grants.
Product overview
PopStock is a single, unified educational platform—a free-to-use stock market simulation tool that combines pop culture icons (music artists) with trading mechanics to teach financial literacy. The platform includes a core simulation engine, Learning Nuggets (video lessons), Teacher Tools/Admin Panel for educators, Financial Future Beats for budgeting/saving/investing skills, and an inter-school Competition Module. The platform's curriculum features interactive modules and sample lessons that use artists like BLACKPINK and Taylor Swift as analogies for teaching statistics, probability, and investment concepts.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- PopStock Educational Platform A comprehensive stock market simulation platform that lets students buy and sell shares of music artists in a simulated trading environment. Combines pop culture icons with curriculum-aligned financial literacy content covering budgeting, investing fundamentals, risk assessment, macroeconomics, stop-loss, limit orders, market terminology, and options trading. Free for all students with no ads; schools pay a small monthly maintenance and support fee for unlimited users.
Quantifiable outcome
- Only 15% of Americans aged 18-29 invest in individual stocks, mutual funds, or retirement accounts (Gallup 2023)
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Popstock Educational Services
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Popstock Educational Services technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature7 records
Popstock Educational Services partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Popstock Educational Services competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- HowTheMarketWorks: HowTheMarketWorks provides a virtual stock and options trading platform with free classroom competitions for K-12 and college educators. Its class-vs-class competition mechanics directly mirror PopStock's inter-school competition module.
- StockTrak: StockTrak provides virtual stock market simulations and portfolio-trading tools widely used by universities and high schools for financial education. It is the most direct functional peer to PopStock's simulated-trading classroom platform, though it does not use a pop-culture content layer.
- Greenlight: Greenlight is a fintech/financial-literacy platform for kids and teens that combines a debit card with investing and educational content. It targets a similar demographic and competes for parents' and schools' attention on teen money management.
- Zogo Finance: Zogo is a mobile-first financial literacy app that rewards learning with gamified modules and has partnerships with banks and credit unions to reach young adults. It targets the same youth financial-literacy segment as PopStock and competes for school and partner mindshare.
- Next Gen Personal Finance: NGPF provides free, standards-aligned personal finance curriculum and educator resources widely adopted by U.S. high schools. It is a direct competitor for the teacher-procurement channel that PopStock depends on for school adoption.
- Wall Street Survivor: Wall Street Survivor offers a stock market simulator paired with investing courses aimed at retail users and students. Its combination of virtual trading and structured curriculum makes it a close comparable to PopStock's trading-plus-lessons design.
Others
- Investopedia: Investopedia is a leading consumer finance education site with a long-running stock simulator. It is not a K-12 platform but is a comparable content + simulation model that some teen users and educators default to.
- The Motley Fool: The Motley Fool provides financial education content and a stock-rating service targeted at retail investors. It overlaps with PopStock's mission of teaching stock-market fundamentals, though it is not a classroom or youth-focused product.
Broad incumbents
- EVERFI: EVERFI is an established K-12 and adult digital learning platform with deep district relationships and a financial literacy track. It is a much larger, broader incumbent that competes for the same school and district contracts PopStock is targeting.
- Khan Academy: Khan Academy offers free, widely adopted personal finance and economics content for K-12 students, supported by major philanthropic funding. It competes indirectly as the dominant free educational content destination PopStock must differentiate against.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Popstock Educational Services social profiles
Digital presencePopstock Educational Services compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Popstock Educational Services financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Popstock Educational Services leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Popstock Educational Services funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Popstock Educational Services M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Popstock Educational Services
What does Popstock Educational Services do?
Popstock Educational Services develops PopStock, a free, pop-culture-themed stock market simulation platform that teaches financial literacy to underserved youth. The software combines trading mechanics with music artist "stocks," curriculum-aligned interactive modules, teacher admin dashboards, and inter-school competitions, and is distributed to high schools and alternative learning programs primarily through direct engagement with educational institutions, supported by donations and grants.
Is Popstock Educational Services a public or private company?
Popstock Educational Services is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Popstock Educational Services founded?
Popstock Educational Services was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Popstock Educational Services based?
Popstock Educational Services is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Popstock Educational Services make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Donations and Grants are the primary driver. The others are school Maintenance and Support Fee.
Who are Popstock Educational Services's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are HowTheMarketWorks, StockTrak, Greenlight, Zogo Finance, Next Gen Personal Finance and Wall Street Survivor. Others are Investopedia and The Motley Fool. Broad incumbents are EVERFI and Khan Academy.
Does Popstock Educational Services have an API?
No public API is recorded for Popstock Educational Services.
What industry is Popstock Educational Services in?
Popstock Educational Services's product category is Financial Literacy Education Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFANAH, Math & Science Interactive Learning Platforms (STEM Core), with a secondary code of EDAMAHAB, Business Planning, Pitching & Competitions (Pitch Decks, Demo Days). Its NAICS code is 611710 and its SIC code is 8200.