Photo courtesy of “D Magazine”
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (PTTP)- Familiar to television audiences and sports fans alike, Mark Cuban is the star of ABC’s Shark Tank, billionaire investor, and the acclaimed owner of the NBA championship winning Dallas Mavericks.
Cuban, a Pittsburgh native, offered his thoughts on the student debt crisis, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), digital currencies, and Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs– his new online pharmaceutical company.
For years, Cuban has warned about the “student loan bubble.”
Napier: What will it take to solve the student debt crisis?
Cuban: Future students being smarter shoppers. Going to low cost schools for their first two years and then transferring , if necessary, if they think they can get better educated at a more expensive schools. Colleges are 90 percent the same. If kids stick to schools they can afford or keep their loans to what they can afford then colleges will have to reduce their pricing to match the market. Unfortunately which college you go to has become an emotional decision rather than pragmatic.
Cuban is a self-proclaimed crypto “evangelist.” His own NFT platform, Lazy.com, offers users a unique way for investors to display their non-fungible tokens.
Napier: Any advice for students looking to delve into the NFT/digital currency realm?
Cuban: Do your homework. There is a lot of noise. Make sure you know why you are spending your hard earned money. If it’s only because you think it will go up in value, be careful.
Having made his vast fortune in the technology sector, Cuban has now set his sights on the multibillion dollar pharmaceutical industry. Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs is “an effort to disrupt the drug industry and to do our best to end ridiculous drug prices.”
Dr. Alex Oshmyansky, the CEO of Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs, was “incensed” by the skyrocketing price of his patients’ generic drugs. “The markup on potentially lifesaving drugs that people depend on is a problem that can’t be ignored. It is imperative that we take action and help expand access to these medications for those who need them most,” stated Dr. Oshymansky in a press release.
Napier: What traits were you looking for your executives at Cost Plus Drugs to exhibit during the hiring process?
Cuban: Hire smart people who love to learn and are committed to reducing the stress of our customers. And if you go to a low cost state school, that’s an advantage.
On Sunday night at 11:50 P.M. EST (an hour after a two-point Mavericks loss), Mr. Cuban received one last question via email: “What’s the greatest lesson you’ve learned from being the owner of the Dallas Mavericks?” Within two minutes, he responded, “Losing is painful.”