Dear Sirs: I am providing the following information in response to the possibility that FINRA is apparently in the process of promulgating restrictions that may cause severe harm to my ability to take advantage of the current system that allows investment in public securities and ETFs. As such, my ability to provide financial support to myself, my wife, and my immediate family may be destroyed. I see no reason why the current system, and my use of it should be impacted to the extent that I might not have access to ETFs, or have to go through some sort of qualification program to invest in ETFs. There are plenty of opportunities to learn how to invest that can be found on the web, at brokerage institutions, or through relatives/friends and many other sources. There is no way a person can invest money without risk, and there is no way regulations can be developed the will universally change that. Look what happened to NFLX on 20Apr22: earnings projection were good, overall expert sentiment was positive, yet they were wrong. The only investors that did not incur a huge loss were those that had some sort of a hedge.
I am a long time buyer/seller of stocks, options, and ETFs. My account holder, Fidelity Investments, has determined that I am sufficiently qualified to make trades using their system and associated tools. They have representatives that are available to answer any questions I might have at a moments notice. I see no reason why I should have additional requirements imposed on me. I know that, if I place a trade, I could lose some or all of the associated funds. I know that some ETFs have failed. It is my money, and I assume the risk, good or bad.
I am currently in my mid-70s. Because of my age, I am more of a trader than an investor. At my stage of life I dont believe it makes much sense to buy a stock with the expectation it will be higher in price in five or so years in the future. I now typically trade ETFs, both long and inverse, because they provide an opportunity to spread risk over a number of different stocks, similar to the way a mutual fund does. A critical aspect of the ETFs is the advent of inverse ETFs which allow the ability to hedge. The ability to hedge is critical because of the unfair capabilities of High Frequency Trading, which can crush a stock (eg. NFLX, 20Apr22) in such a short time that one may not have the time to react without suffering severe losses. I have no problem with the ability to develop and implement algorithms to make decisions on buying/selling stocks or ETFs. I do have a problem that High Frequency Trading can make trades thousands of time faster than I can. This should be investigated as to the fairness of that sort of capability and the impact to the individual investor.
I have developed various strategies to effectively trade ETFs. My strategies have evolved over time as market conditions have changed. Overall, they have been very profitable to me and my family. I also have access to, and use, software tools that provide access to mathematical indicators that can be effectively used to create and/or improve strategies. The internet, available to all investors, also provides many sources as well.
In summary, there is risk in investing. Everyone who invests through a broker must acknowledge that fact. Once done, they knowingly become responsible for whatever outcome occurs. Leave ETFs alone. They are efficient and effective trading choices. Deletion of access to them will unfairly cause huge financial penalties to citizens in a most unfair way.
Thomas Noethen Comment On Regulatory Notice 22-08
Dear Sirs: I am providing the following information in response to the possibility that FINRA is apparently in the process of promulgating restrictions that may cause severe harm to my ability to take advantage of the current system that allows investment in public securities and ETFs. As such, my ability to provide financial support to myself, my wife, and my immediate family may be destroyed. I see no reason why the current system, and my use of it should be impacted to the extent that I might not have access to ETFs, or have to go through some sort of qualification program to invest in ETFs. There are plenty of opportunities to learn how to invest that can be found on the web, at brokerage institutions, or through relatives/friends and many other sources. There is no way a person can invest money without risk, and there is no way regulations can be developed the will universally change that. Look what happened to NFLX on 20Apr22: earnings projection were good, overall expert sentiment was positive, yet they were wrong. The only investors that did not incur a huge loss were those that had some sort of a hedge.
I am a long time buyer/seller of stocks, options, and ETFs. My account holder, Fidelity Investments, has determined that I am sufficiently qualified to make trades using their system and associated tools. They have representatives that are available to answer any questions I might have at a moments notice. I see no reason why I should have additional requirements imposed on me. I know that, if I place a trade, I could lose some or all of the associated funds. I know that some ETFs have failed. It is my money, and I assume the risk, good or bad.
I am currently in my mid-70s. Because of my age, I am more of a trader than an investor. At my stage of life I dont believe it makes much sense to buy a stock with the expectation it will be higher in price in five or so years in the future. I now typically trade ETFs, both long and inverse, because they provide an opportunity to spread risk over a number of different stocks, similar to the way a mutual fund does. A critical aspect of the ETFs is the advent of inverse ETFs which allow the ability to hedge. The ability to hedge is critical because of the unfair capabilities of High Frequency Trading, which can crush a stock (eg. NFLX, 20Apr22) in such a short time that one may not have the time to react without suffering severe losses. I have no problem with the ability to develop and implement algorithms to make decisions on buying/selling stocks or ETFs. I do have a problem that High Frequency Trading can make trades thousands of time faster than I can. This should be investigated as to the fairness of that sort of capability and the impact to the individual investor.
I have developed various strategies to effectively trade ETFs. My strategies have evolved over time as market conditions have changed. Overall, they have been very profitable to me and my family. I also have access to, and use, software tools that provide access to mathematical indicators that can be effectively used to create and/or improve strategies. The internet, available to all investors, also provides many sources as well.
In summary, there is risk in investing. Everyone who invests through a broker must acknowledge that fact. Once done, they knowingly become responsible for whatever outcome occurs. Leave ETFs alone. They are efficient and effective trading choices. Deletion of access to them will unfairly cause huge financial penalties to citizens in a most unfair way.