It is deeply disturbing that thee are proposed limitations on leveraged and inverse ETFs being discussed. Although concerns are valid that these investments do carry increased risk, anyone who does their due diligence reading the forms and prospectuses and looking at the one, five, and ten year charts can see whether the investment is a hedge/short term only (most inverse funds) or whether it carries extra risk, just by educating oneself on how these funds work. If we were required to take a ten minute online quiz demonstrating this understanding, that would be acceptable. But to bar us from investing altogether? That violates investor equality; coming from a democratic administration, I would expect that retail investors like myself who are trying to make money work for us would not be deprived of tools that help us achieve that goal. Investment vehicles should not be privatized for only the rich. And I understand that while I can reap a windfall with leveraged funds, I also risk medium to long term periods of losses of the majority of their value in market downturns. That is why as a rule, I allocate a limited percentage of my portfolio to leveraged funds, and am OK with the possibility that that money be lost in an adverse market event. I earned the money, I paid taxes on the money, so why should I not be able to invest it in the strategies that I see fit to invest it in? Recent companies have had even riskier moves. A recent situation involving a retail video game store stock appreciating a hundredfold due to popular opinion left many retail investors holding the bag. Many innovative tech companies, several which have become household names in the pandemic, have lost north of 80% of their value since their peak in 2021. Should we regulate those stocks as well? I would support a short education course that would take up maybe an hour of my time a year that allows me to demonstrate that I understand the risks. I do not support any limitations on our ability as retail investors to choose the investment vehicles that best meet our strategies both short and long term. Please do not restrict our ability to trade leveraged and inverse ETFs. Thanks, a registered voter and retail investor.
David Farrell Comment On Regulatory Notice 22-08
To whom it may concern;
It is deeply disturbing that thee are proposed limitations on leveraged and inverse ETFs being discussed. Although concerns are valid that these investments do carry increased risk, anyone who does their due diligence reading the forms and prospectuses and looking at the one, five, and ten year charts can see whether the investment is a hedge/short term only (most inverse funds) or whether it carries extra risk, just by educating oneself on how these funds work. If we were required to take a ten minute online quiz demonstrating this understanding, that would be acceptable. But to bar us from investing altogether? That violates investor equality; coming from a democratic administration, I would expect that retail investors like myself who are trying to make money work for us would not be deprived of tools that help us achieve that goal. Investment vehicles should not be privatized for only the rich. And I understand that while I can reap a windfall with leveraged funds, I also risk medium to long term periods of losses of the majority of their value in market downturns. That is why as a rule, I allocate a limited percentage of my portfolio to leveraged funds, and am OK with the possibility that that money be lost in an adverse market event. I earned the money, I paid taxes on the money, so why should I not be able to invest it in the strategies that I see fit to invest it in? Recent companies have had even riskier moves. A recent situation involving a retail video game store stock appreciating a hundredfold due to popular opinion left many retail investors holding the bag. Many innovative tech companies, several which have become household names in the pandemic, have lost north of 80% of their value since their peak in 2021. Should we regulate those stocks as well? I would support a short education course that would take up maybe an hour of my time a year that allows me to demonstrate that I understand the risks. I do not support any limitations on our ability as retail investors to choose the investment vehicles that best meet our strategies both short and long term. Please do not restrict our ability to trade leveraged and inverse ETFs. Thanks, a registered voter and retail investor.