New Financial Education
This content first appeared in NIL Corner, my monthly column in Sports Business Journal.
I’m Becoming More Optimistic About NIL Tools
When I started writing this column at the end of 2022, a journalist friend of mine said to me, “Writing a column is not a news article, but it is news.” It’s taken me almost a year, but I now finally understand what she means.
I’ve been planning for months to write about greater financial education for student-athletes. The NIL era has amplified the interest in financial literacy, but my surveys are a monthly reminder of the challenge and opportunity in front of us:
Nearly three-quarters of student-athletes are “interested” or “very interested” in financial literacy.
Student-Athletes report that their financial views are mostly informed by (and I'm not kidding): TikTok.
While student-athletes are allowed to hire Professional Service Providers, including Financial Advisors, only about 5% do.
Now the news: earlier this month, Morgan Stanley Global Sports & Entertainment launched a platform called Money in the Making. Based on what I’ve seen, I’m optimistic that NIL may have its first expertly developed, affordable, and scalable solution for student-athletes.
The Start of Financial Education
When NIL launched, it was soon realized that some student-athletes might earn large sums of money for the first time in their lives. And with no training or support, that seemed like a dangerous scenario.
A narrative began to take hold. A story where the protagonist is a “star” athlete (probably a quarterback) and lands an “endorsement, worth millions.” He is destined to be taken advantage of. What he does not lose to the vultures around him, he will pay to the IRS in back-taxes, because he did not understand that he had been paid with pre-tax dollars.
In response to the “star QB as victim” tale, state legislators began to pass state NIL laws that required financial education. The NCAA started to mention financial literacy in their statements. Universities kicked-off financial education sessions, often presented by local financial advisors.
Don’t get me wrong: any financial education is a positive, regardless of the false pretense by which it may have been started or the relatively small number of student-athletes it might impact.
What’s been missing until now is a financial education tool that is from a credible provider, done at scale, and at an affordable price. In comes Morgan Stanley Global Sports & Entertainment’s Money in the Making.
Financial Education at Scale
Money in the Making is a digital financial education platform with a simple goal: to furnish college and high school student-athletes (as well as professionals in sports and entertainment) with financial knowledge, tools, and resources to amass and manage wealth.
The platform focuses on budgeting, saving, investing, and credit management, taxation, personal branding, and entrepreneurship. While the platform is not exclusively for student-athletes, their is NIL-specific content, including:
Finding and evaluating NIL deals
Starting a business and building a brand
Managing sudden wealth and narrow earning windows
The platform includes videos, podcasts, and articles. Larry Fitzgerald, a 17-year NFL veteran and entrepreneur serves as a financial education advocate for the program. Fitzgerald is included in some of the initial content and there are plans for him to share more of his personal stories and insights as the program evolves.
Sandra Richards, Managing Director, Head Morgan Stanley GSE, described why it was important for her team to take their time and not have rushed getting a tool like this to the NIL landscape too early. “We developed this based on the questions and the needs of the market. And we will produce more content as the needs of student-athletes change.”
The platform does not use paywalls and is completely free to users.
The Sign of Educational Tools to Come
Nearly two years ago, 74% of student-athletes I surveyed said they wanted to learn about investment platforms. 76% wanted to learn how to do their taxes. 44% were concerned about student debt.
Since that time, relatively few student-athletes have received the training and support we would have hoped for. I’m optimistic that new platforms like this one by Morgan Stanley and others are the start of the next generation of NIL tools.
Bill Carter is an NIL Consultant, Educator, and Speaker. He is a NIL Columnist for Sports Business Journal and teaches NIL in College Sports at the University of Vermont’s Grossman School of Business. Click here to read about Bill’s NIL Consulting and NIL Education for sports organizations, universities, and brands.