February 13, 2020
I understand the intention of preventing uninformed people from putting themselves at financial risk by making careless investments, but the proposed rule goes too far in its nebulous restrictions on the ability of regular people to make our own decisions in regards to how we invest our own money.
As someone earning relatively low wages, I utilize leveraged ETFs in order to see appreciable growth on what little I am able to save. I took care to inform myself about the risks associated with these investments, and have studied strategies to manage those risks. I would never dump all of my savings into high-risk volatile investments, but under this rule I might be deemed unfit to make the investments I am making anyway - on the basis of my financial situation. That sounds like discrimination to me.
By carefully utilizing leveraged ETFs I have become more financially secure, and am finally able to look forward to a comfortable retirement. That would not otherwise be possible with my wages and lack of benefits, which is a financial reality for many hard-working Americans.
If the goal is to help and not hinder people such as myself, consider something like this instead: a clear one-time advisement informing the would-be investor of the risks, asking them to acknowledge that they understand them, and offering useful advice on how to mitigate those risks - not a draconian and discriminatory measure that would rob some of us of the freedom to choose how we invest altogether.
Please do not interfere with my ability to become financially secure by my own means.