March 11, 2020
Regarding proposed rule #S7-24-15,
I do not have CFA certification or even a bachelor's degree. I am currently in my 20s. My investments are funded mainly by my wife's blue-collar job. At the surface, it probably doesn't sound like I would be "capable of evaluating the risks" of using LI funds.
However, a simple overview of this information does not provide the whole story. I am a college student, currently studying mathematics, with an emphasis in finance. Because of my sound investment decisions, I have been able to pay for college without taking on any debt whatsoever. Leveraged and inverse funds specifically have been essential to enabling me to afford an education.
One of the foundations of a market economy is the idea that each market actor is rational, and each is uniquely in the best position to decide what choices will benefit him or her. This idea has been proven true countless times, and is one of the key reasons for the prosperity of the USA and Europe over the last century. Denial of this market principle can only lead to stagnation and inefficiency, as already happened in Maoist China and the USSR. Isn't it strange, then, that the SEC is seriously considering regulations which question the wisdom of something so important?
Another foundation of market economies is that everyone, working solely in their own self-interest, will benefit society at large through rational, self-interested decisions. In my case, preventing me from using LI funds will force me to take on debt to continue my education. I may need to take on a job as well, prolonging my time until graduation and decreasing my productivity. Self-interest is compelling me to provide you this feedback, asking you to do what is best for the American economy as a whole.
The proposed regulation cannot, under any circumstances, provide any benefit to the economy because it is fundamentally contrary to the nature of a market economy. I trust that you, also looking after your own self-interest, will make the rational choice and protect the free market from destructive intervention.