August 28, 2021
1. Do you have one or more online trading or investment accounts?
Yes, I have one or more accounts that I access both online using a computer and using a mobile app.
2. If your response to Question 1 is Yes, do you think you would trade or invest if you could not do so online using a computer or using a mobile app?
No
3. On average, how often do you access your online account?
Daily/more than once a day
4. On average, how often are trades made in your online account, whether by you or someone else?
Once to a few times a week.
5. If you access your account online, did you have the account first, and only began to access it electronically later? Or did you open the account with the idea that you would access it electronically immediately?
I downloaded an app or visited a website first, and then opened up an account with the company
6. My goals for trading or investing in my online account are (check all that apply):
Save and grow my money for short-term goals (in the next year or two)
Save and grow my money for medium- to long-term goals
Have fun
7. What would you like us to know about your experience with the features of your online trading or investment platform? (Examples of features are: social networking tools games, streaks, or contests with prizes points, badges, and leaderboards notifications celebrations for trading visual cues, like changing colors ideas presented at order placement or other curated lists or features subscription and membership tiers or chatbots.)
I began trading on robinhood. After their GME debacle I transferred out all assets. Looking back the visual cues and sound affects likely had an affect on my trading. Loading me up with dopamine and then presenting financial decisions. That being said, robinhood did have good info sometimes, such as their categorical lists they provide, for different industries and tickers. The advisors tabs they have on tickers is generally uselessness though as it fails to let you know who these advisers are. Just giving you random numbers without context. That could easily sway investors opinions in a way that is seemingly innocuous. Additionally, it may be my imagination, but the movement alerts they provide sometimes only seem to provide news in a particular direction with certain tickers, example being only reporting when a stock goes down and never giving you alerts for positive movements. I got the feeling they were attempting to seay my decisions several times. This being said believe trading apps are the future, but with all things financial there needs to be rigorous oversight and not by a non-government entity. FINRA and the other non-govt entities have more than proven incapable of doing such a thing without massive bias and temptation for cheating.
8. If you were trading or investing prior to using an online account, how have your investing and trading behaviors changed since you started using your online account? (For example, the amount of money you have invested, your interest in learning about investing and saving for retirement, the amount of time you have spent trading, your knowledge of financial products, the number of trades you have made, the amount of money you have made in trading, your knowledge of the markets, the number of different types of financial products you have traded, or your use of margin.)
N/A
9. How much experience do you have trading or investing in the following products (None, 12 months, 1-2 years, 2-5 years, 5+ years):
Stocks : 2-5 Years
Bonds : None
Options : 1-2 Years
Mutual Funds : None
ETFs : 1-2 Years
Futures : None
Cryptocurrencies : 2-5 Years
Commodities : None
ClosedEnd Funds : None
Money Market Funds : None
Variable Insurance Products : None
Business Development Companies : None
Unit Investment Trusts : None
10. What is your understanding, if any, of the circumstances under which trading or investing in your account can be suspended or restricted?
You can only day trade 5 times a week with under $25,000 in your account (but i can go to a casino and let chance decide my fate with no issues) trading on margin can also get you locked out if you get margin called and have to pay up or be liquidated. Going into the red with your broker will also result in suspension.
11. What else would you like us to know positive or negative - about your experience with online trading and investing?
The main concern for me is brokers providing accurate and unbiased information for their clients. I doubt their are probes providing people with intel about reporting/notification bias with these apps. It would be very easy to sway new traders opinions by omitting the opinions of certain advisers or simply shutting off positive or negative of the notifications. There needs to be more eyes in that, as for gamification in and of it self, is an issue that needs to be addressed in financial issues and the rest of our world. The psychological science advances made in the past several decades have been a noiseless equivalent of the manhattan project. The economy of the time is using science to encroach on the sanctity of the human mind and that path can only lead to ruin. Any device designed to pull on reward systems need be pulled out not only for the sake of organic markets but for the sake of raw and inarguable ethics