Robinhood Markets, GameStop Corp. and hedge funds are all on the wish list that House Financial Services chairman Maxine Waters is putting together for a trial that will look at the Reddit shares that shocked Wall Street and lawmakers.
“I try everyone who plays a role,” Waters said in an interview, without mentioning specific executives she intends to testify about. “I want Reddit there. I want Robinhood there. I even want GameStop there. And I want some of the hedge funds there. ‘
The California Democrat cited Citadel, the hedge fund set up by billionaire Ken Griffin, and Melvin Capital, which lost 53% in January after being hampered by the GameStop pinch, which was posted on Reddit message boards by an army of retail investors.
Waters has also indicated that she could ask Keith Gill, a Reddit contributor recognized with the inspiring GameStop’s remarkable rally, to appear. On YouTube, Gill goes by the screen name “Roaring Kitty.”
“Young man, I think his name is ‘Gill,’ it all started, I put him on my list,” Waters said.
The February 18 hearing offers lawmakers the chance to rally Titans on Wall Street and ask about possible reforms needed to tame a market that has, at least temporarily, become unhindered of economic reality. GameStop, which has not been expected to make a profit for years, was on a wild ride and rose to $ 347.51 a share last month before trading at $ 92.41 in New York.
Retail investors fueled the rise, but some were presumably hit by the losses, causing concerns that they were taking risks they did not understand and could not afford.
Robinhood, Citadel and Melvin all star in the saga. Robinhood is the place where most retail investors made their best bets on GameStop, before the brokers infuriated them last week by restricting its clients from buying new shares in the video game retailer.
In addition to its hedge fund, Griffin also controls Citadel Securities, a giant market that pays Robinhood for the right to trade its clients’ shares. Griffin and his partners invested $ 2 billion in Melvin as he struggled with his losses on GameStop.
(An earlier version corrected the spelling of Melvin Capital)