Our mobile devices have given us increasing access to a huge range of different platforms both existing and new, with many providing a way for some to make money or a bit of extra money on the side. Some rely on a little randomness, money through gaming, as online casinos like these have found huge success despite initiatives such as Gamstop aimed at reducing player options – the other, perhaps another form of gambling in itself has also found growth, as the day trader for forex and stocks has also managed to attract many new traders, and the start of 2021 certainly opened up a number of new opportunities.
The start of the year saw the trading movement happen largely in part due to the Reddit community of wallstreetbets – the movement for the Gamestop stock saw the community grow from just a few hundred thousand to over four million strong within just a few months and led to huge number of individuals turning to trading as an option to make money – but it has been a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it has introduced a wider audience to options trading, and may lead to many more seeking out other forms of trading as a means to make a little on the side and better understand the market, and with potential changes coming to the consumer trading platform too there may be better opportunities to score some good deals too.
On the other hand, the recent few months have explored some huge flaws in the consumer trading space too – it was mostly seen with platforms like Robinhood which during the height of the Gamestop short squeeze saw the platform refuse purchase orders and even limiting the amount that can be bought for a short period of time, in what many would describe as market manipulation. There are now pending cases to explore the full impact of this but given the community movement to drive the price of a stock, and the reaction to prevent this from happening, it has become a concern for some.
As change is on the way, it could signal a big overhaul in the way consumer trading platforms work, or it could just lead to more of the same, but one thing that does remain true is that there has been much more attention paid to these platforms in recent months, and now retail traders have a greater number of opportunities, and different ways for retail traders to make a little extra money.
