WASHINGTON, D.C.—Benjamin Schiffrin, Director of Securities Policy, issued the following statement in connection with Better Markets’ new Report, “Let’s Not Make the Same Mistakes With Stock Trading as We Made With Sports Gambling”:

“Today is the seven-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision legalizing sports gambling. That decision has led to an epidemic of sports gambling addiction in this country. One of the main reasons is the ability to place bets 24 hours a day. As a result, the lessons of legalizing sports gambling have ramifications for another huge industry—stock trading. That’s because securities exchanges now want to expand trading hours so that stock markets are open essentially around the clock. This would pose huge risks for retail investors, from inducing excessive trading to speculative trading to impulsive trading.

“Retail investors already, to some extent, treat the stock market as akin to gambling, and one of the reasons is that investing money in the stock market can result in the same sensations that people experience when gambling. Indeed, brokerage apps have already led to a rise in retail trading addiction. One can only imagine what will happen if retail investors are able to use these apps to place trades on stock exchanges in the middle of the night.

“At the same time, one does not have to imagine. We’ve seen what happened when we legalized sports gambling and made it available 24/7. The consequences for retail investors of around-the-clock trading on stock exchanges could be even worse. That’s because some gambling experts say that the consumer protections in the gambling industry are greater than those in the financial markets. The fact that everyday Americans may be better protected from the gambling industry than from the financial industry is astounding. 24/7 stock exchanges will only make the problem worse. Regulators should not endanger retail investors by turning stock exchanges into full-fledged casinos.”

The Report is available here.

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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies—including many in finance—to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.org.