195. Jani Järvinen explains what STNX is all about
STNX has surely become familiar to many forum members, especially from X, and for those slightly less boomer-aged, it has also become known on platforms like Instagram. However, I suspect that STNX is still more or less unknown to a large portion of forum members. Furthermore, some may have prejudices or misunderstandings regarding it, which is why I decided to interview Jani Järvinen from STNX. 
Jani is a really nice, smart, and articulate guy who has rightfully received plenty of praise for his investment-themed content and his performances. He knows how to explain even difficult topics in an understandable and relaxed, engaging way without unnecessary jargon. He was my interviewee 1.5 years ago (link to the interview), and before that, about three years ago, Kevin & Teemu from the same company were the ones I grilled (link to their interview).
But now, on to the interview itself:
1. To start, could you briefly introduce yourself and Sijoituskästi Media?
I’m Jani, a 30-year-old guy from Kuopio. My official title is Analyst and Partner at Sijoituskästi, but in practice, we use the term “Meme Master.” I also head our STNX brand. I’ve been a stock investor for over 10 years, and I mainly invest in Nordic stocks.
Sijoituskästi Media is a modern media company, whose flagship product is, of course, the Sijoituskästi podcast, which is the largest podcast in Finland. The company also includes another brand, STNX, which focuses purely on companies, stocks, and markets. Since numbers are often of interest, our revenue is between 1.3 and 1.5 million this year (though a positive profit warning is very possible). Profitability (EBIT-%) is roughly ~50%, but it could be lower if we grow the team in advance to anticipate future growth.
2. What is STNX actually, and what does it do in practice?
STNX is a modern channel focused on investment content. Currently, our main content format is short-form videos where we talk about listed companies, go through the most interesting stories in the markets, and teach the basics of investing. The videos are distributed on our social media accounts, but we also just launched our own platform, stnx.fi. The platform also features text-based content, but the energy remains the same—low-threshold investment content for those who might otherwise be left in the dark. About 10–15% of Sijoituskästi Media’s revenue comes from the STNX side.
In the future, the plan is to bring other content under STNX as well. For example, there’s a brand-new podcast on the table—if this comes to fruition, it will have just the right mix of something new and old for those who have followed Kästi’s productions 
Additionally, I occasionally go to various live events to talk about investing; this is the most fun part, so don’t hesitate to send a message if you have something in mind 
3. Investors already have access to services/sites like Inderes, SalkunRakentaja, and Sijoitustieto, not to mention bank analyses and plenty of other investment content. Why do we still need STNX?
The channels mentioned above are excellent sources of information, but they are aimed at more advanced investors. The purpose of STNX is to make investment topics as low-threshold as possible. There is a huge mass of people who are interested in investing or sensible financial management as a concept, but who don’t understand terms like “EBITDA” or “depreciation.” Furthermore, many don’t have the interest/time/energy to spend hours a week following investment news. This group of people creates a huge gap that “old” formats don’t effectively reach.
For example, there wasn’t much visible, high-production-value investment content on short-video services, even though many people spend a lot of time there and would like to hear about investing and finance—provided it’s in suitably light doses so that they don’t get overwhelmed or triggered by the “I don’t understand this, I’m not interested” reflex. A rule of thumb in our productions is that every sentence in a video should be understandable regardless of background, without a dictionary. We don’t always succeed, but that is always our goal.
The purpose of STNX is to familiarize this neglected group with companies on the stock exchange and to get them to hear economic talk in an engaging way. It inevitably teaches them, and in the best case, sparks a fire for investing and better managing their own finances. I believe our content benefits most the person who has limited time to follow the markets and is still at a beginner skill level. Conversely, if you are already a pro and spend hours a week following the markets, our productions might not offer you much beyond a refresher and entertainment. That’s fine; something for everyone.
4. STNX also performs company-paid analysis. How do you ensure that these analyses remain independent and credible?
Currently, STNX’s entire revenue is essentially generated from corporate clients, which means we analyze and talk about what these companies do in our videos. The research and scriptwriting process happens 100% in-house; only fact-checking is done by the company (e.g., numbers, targets, or terms used when talking about drug development). Sometimes companies suggest ideas for the script, but they are mostly rejected because we know for sure—and better than them—(it might sound arrogant, but it is a fact) what kind of script interests the audience and what doesn’t. If a company has a genuinely good point, it can be brought into the script, but even then, it’s written and evaluated by us. The only exception is in IPOs, where we have to use the same terminology as in the listing company’s prospectus. This also somewhat impairs the clarity of the videos, but again, it’s about the terminology, not the video’s story. We define that ourselves even in the case of IPOs.
It is also important to note that we do not analyze the company’s share price or give recommendations. A few-minute video loses its appeal entirely if a target price or a traditional buy/sell recommendation is shoved into it. In that case, the viewer probably won’t remember anything else, and the most important part—the content (which covers the company’s business, market, competitive advantages, risks, etc.)—is forgotten. Instead, at the end of the video, we summarize the current situation of the company’s story (e.g., are they investing in growth, or are they a more steady, established player) on our own STNX scale. However, these are not recommendations regarding the share price, merely a categorization of the company’s business and story.
5. What do you want STNX to grow into in the coming years, and what could be its next big step?
STNX will expand into new formats in the coming years, but we will also continue to produce content on new companies in our short videos, and I believe this trend will continue. The biggest bottleneck relates to research/presenter/producer tasks, i.e., personnel. So, it may be that some recruitments will open up in these areas as well, so keep your eyes and ears open for the future!
The next big step will certainly be new formats. I am personally very excited about the ideas we have, and I would love to start working on them already. There seems to be demand for it, at least based on the feedback from the summer’s Sijoituskästi episodes where I was in the guest seat. There is a place for investment talk equipped with Kästi-style energy and production quality
Many thanks to Jani!
It is worth following Jani on different channels; he definitely has the expertise, knowledge, and skill—proven. Naturally, I also recommend following STNX, as you get good information in a clear format from them.
Note.> STNX is expanding into new formats over the coming years, but we are also consistently creating content about new companies in short-form videos, and I believe this trend will continue. The biggest bottleneck has to do with research/presenter/producer matters, i.e., personnel. It is possible, therefore, that some recruitment openings will appear regarding these as well, so keep your eyes and ears peeled for the future!
Have a great rest of your Friday!