August 28, 2021
1. Do you have one or more online trading or investment accounts?
Yes, I have one or more accounts that I access both online using a computer and using a mobile app.
2. If your response to Question 1 is Yes, do you think you would trade or invest if you could not do so online using a computer or using a mobile app?
No
3. On average, how often do you access your online account?
Once to a few times a week
4. On average, how often are trades made in your online account, whether by you or someone else?
Once to a few times per month.
5. If you access your account online, did you have the account first, and only began to access it electronically later? Or did you open the account with the idea that you would access it electronically immediately?
I had a pre-existing account and downloaded an app or visited a website to access my account
6. My goals for trading or investing in my online account are (check all that apply):
Save and grow my money for short-term goals (in the next year or two)
Save and grow my money for medium- to long-term goals
7. What would you like us to know about your experience with the features of your online trading or investment platform? (Examples of features are: social networking tools games, streaks, or contests with prizes points, badges, and leaderboards notifications celebrations for trading visual cues, like changing colors ideas presented at order placement or other curated lists or features subscription and membership tiers or chatbots.)
8. If you were trading or investing prior to using an online account, how have your investing and trading behaviors changed since you started using your online account? (For example, the amount of money you have invested, your interest in learning about investing and saving for retirement, the amount of time you have spent trading, your knowledge of financial products, the number of trades you have made, the amount of money you have made in trading, your knowledge of the markets, the number of different types of financial products you have traded, or your use of margin.)
9. How much experience do you have trading or investing in the following products (None, 12 months, 1-2 years, 2-5 years, 5+ years):
Stocks : Less Than 12 Months
Bonds : None
Options : None
Mutual Funds : None
ETFs : None
Futures : None
Cryptocurrencies : None
Commodities : None
ClosedEnd Funds : None
Money Market Funds : 5+ Years
Variable Insurance Products : None
Business Development Companies : None
Unit Investment Trusts : None
10. What is your understanding, if any, of the circumstances under which trading or investing in your account can be suspended or restricted?
If I buy stocks and the money from my account doesnt transfer, I will be restricted. Also, if I bought options and there wasnt enough money in my account to cover them, my account would be restricted or suspended.
11. What else would you like us to know positive or negative - about your experience with online trading and investing?
What is the point of allowing online investing when retail buying of stocks does not affect the price of the stock? The markets are not free or fair when supply and demand have no correlation with stock prices. Allowing market makers and hedge funds to create more than 5 times the available float of a security with synthetic shares through naked short selling, and the abuse of dark pools to control stock prices, are my biggest concerns, however.
Retail investors are handing market makers money for shares that are never actually bought, or are sent to dark pools and then are immediately leant out to the next buyer. How is this allowed to be done? We are giving them money for shares that do not exist and have no affect on the price and that they illegally lend out to bring the stock price down.
Additionally, the high speed trading back and forth (wash sales) of stocks in dark pools at prices that are far below the lit exchange price is an illegal practice used to keep the price of the stock down and nothing is done to stop it.
To sum up my experience with online investing,
I cannot believe the SEC and United States government allow a handful of billionaires to manipulate the entire US stock market to the point of it being the corrupt circus that, through social media, the world is now becoming enlightened of. Pull the plug on the illegal activities now, not after youve investigated it for 5 years and then decide the $50 billion the criminals stole is worth a $100,000 fine. The whole world is watching.