September 25, 2021
1. Do you have one or more online trading or investment accounts?
Yes, I have one or more accounts that I access online, either using a computer or a mobile app but I also access the account(s) in other ways (e.g., by calling or visiting in person).
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):
Keep the amount of money I have, while keeping up with inflation
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
Other
If Other, Explain:
To expand on my wealth for my family.
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.)
My experience when I first started was terrible because I knew nothing compared to what I know now. The apps and access through my computer helped me understand things better. There are a lot of tools that became more useful as I learned. My greatest asset is Investopedia and reading regularly from the SEC, DTCC and info boards like reddit and social connections. I would say PFOF is the worst for retail investors as it makes it to easy to perform trades without initial consequences like paying a premium would before a trade is made. Meaning, because I can initiate a trade without a premium it makes it super easy to get caught up in the moment. If I had to pay a small premium to initiate a trade I would give more thought to the trade before spending some of my funds to do so. I don't use the leaderboards, or in app chats. Those are not helpful and only cause misinformation and clout.
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.)
Before the apps I would just put money into a financial firm and have an adviser help. I paid steep premiums for the service and got very little returns. Since the apps I have taken more control of my own risk and have more time and energy put into my plans then before. This is important to me as it makes me the responsible party to how I handle my financial investments.
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 : 5+ Years
Bonds : 1-2 Years
Options : 1-2 Years
Mutual Funds : 5+ Years
ETFs : 1-2 Years
Futures : None
Cryptocurrencies : 5+ Years
Commodities : 5+ Years
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?
There absolutely was not any information nor disclaimer, disclosure or material that informed me my account could ever be restricted or suspended from trading. In all my years of investing I never experienced the circumstances that I experienced in January of 2021. I knew of trading halts and volatility halts but the apps and brokers who suspended trading in January was the worst financial event in my life.
11. What else would you like us to know positive or negative - about your experience with online trading and investing?
Robinhood brokerage is the worst app ever and should be held accountable for what transcribed in the events of January 2021 and prior. Proof for Order Flow should be banned and apps should put all financial disclaimers, tools, contacts to financial help in an easy access front page. Brokerages should not restrict trading to equities that investors are interested in. Apps shouldn't loan your shares out and apps should have a default setting that prevents them from doing so until it receives consent from the investor. Apps should require that only those who are holding equities be able to chat in the apps chat rooms to prevent bots from spamming the chats. Promos from apps should be banned because it's using the investor to recruit naive, ignorant, undisciplined or immature persons to their app without regard to anything. The method of this relates back to PFOF because the investor has become the product for institutions who will and are taking advantage of new investors.