Oh, come on

Wall Street: “we’ve got this, stand back”

Biden’s new SEC Chairman vows to crack down on amateurs playing with stocks

Wall Street’s new top cop said he’s fixing his gaze on the rising use of social-media apps for stock trading — and a clampdown may be coming.

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In his first appearance on Capitol Hill since he took the helm of the SEC last month Gensler raised concerns that apps which “gamify” trading — a criticism that has been leveled at Robinhood, in particular — could lure rookie investors into bad situations.

“The SEC must remain attuned to rapidly changing technologies with an eye to freshening up our rules,” Gensler told lawmakers. “If we don’t address this now, the investing public, those saving for retirement, and education may shoulder the burden later.”

Asked about the rising popularity of cryptocurrencies including bitcoin, Gensler said he believes Congress should examine a “regulatory framework” for crypto exchanges in order to protect investors and that the “crypto-asset market is one that could benefit from greater investor protection.”

It’s pretty rich for Mr. Gensler and his pals to worry about retail ‘investors” on Wall Street, when high-frequency traders control at least half the market, and professional ‘investment advisors” the other. “Value investing” seems as rare these days as investment advisors outperforming index funds.

So who’s “gamifying” Wall Street? Everyone; the pros just don’t want anyone else screwing up their fun.

As for cryptocurrencies, I’ve been astonished that the government has let it go on so long: they have the printing press to invent money backed by nothing, and damned if they’ll someone else join the game of illusion.