In April 2022, I received a message from Vanguard stating that I would no longer be able to invest in shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) in my Roth IRA. This email was very concerning and surprising since my Roth IRA has massively outperformed the market since adding GBTC a number of years ago.
More recently, I became aware of FINRA's proposed regulations to prevent or restrict investors such as myself from buying a wide range of securities that could be labeled as "complex products." It is apparent to me that this proposed rule is why Vanguard has preemptively restricted my ability to purchase more shares of GBTC and I must clearly state that these proposed regulations are already harming me and I request that they be stopped.
The concept that a US Government agency knows more about how to keep me and my family financially safe than I do is erroneous and laughable. US Investors--who now have the ability to research anything through a quick Google search--live in a country that historically has valued Freedom and the ability to make one's own choices and we do not need FINRA to arbitrarily restrict our investment choices more than they already are.
Finally, I would argue that a reasonable allocation to Bitcoin products like GBTC, BITO--or a spot-based Bitcoin ETF which is sure to be approved by the SEC sooner or later--helps to create a more diversified portfolio and in the medium-to-long term will far outpace an investment portfolio that does not include those assets. Bitcoin does have volatile short-term price swings but it is obvious that the medium-to-long term performance has far outperformed more typical investments and more and more Americans are discovering this each week. As the older generations in America pass away and digital natives continue to have more and more investable income, this trend will only accelerate--assuming FINRA and other regulators allow Americans to invest as we see best for our families' well-being.
Please stop this proposed rule and let the American public continue to choose which securities they invest in.
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Sean Johnson Comment On Regulatory Notice 22-08
In April 2022, I received a message from Vanguard stating that I would no longer be able to invest in shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) in my Roth IRA. This email was very concerning and surprising since my Roth IRA has massively outperformed the market since adding GBTC a number of years ago.
More recently, I became aware of FINRA's proposed regulations to prevent or restrict investors such as myself from buying a wide range of securities that could be labeled as "complex products." It is apparent to me that this proposed rule is why Vanguard has preemptively restricted my ability to purchase more shares of GBTC and I must clearly state that these proposed regulations are already harming me and I request that they be stopped.
The concept that a US Government agency knows more about how to keep me and my family financially safe than I do is erroneous and laughable. US Investors--who now have the ability to research anything through a quick Google search--live in a country that historically has valued Freedom and the ability to make one's own choices and we do not need FINRA to arbitrarily restrict our investment choices more than they already are.
Finally, I would argue that a reasonable allocation to Bitcoin products like GBTC, BITO--or a spot-based Bitcoin ETF which is sure to be approved by the SEC sooner or later--helps to create a more diversified portfolio and in the medium-to-long term will far outpace an investment portfolio that does not include those assets. Bitcoin does have volatile short-term price swings but it is obvious that the medium-to-long term performance has far outperformed more typical investments and more and more Americans are discovering this each week. As the older generations in America pass away and digital natives continue to have more and more investable income, this trend will only accelerate--assuming FINRA and other regulators allow Americans to invest as we see best for our families' well-being.
Please stop this proposed rule and let the American public continue to choose which securities they invest in.
Thank you for your consideration.