Representative Maxine Waters, Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, has scheduled a hearing to address the trading in Gamestop shares as well as the broader issue of market volatility. The hearing, entitled “Game Stopped? Who Wins and Loses When Short Sellers, Social Media, and Retail Investors Collide” will take place on February 18, 2020, beginning at 12 noon.
While it is anticipated that the CEO of Robinhood, Vlad Tenev, will testify the list of participants in the hearing has not yet been posted.
Representative Waters stated last week:
“Hedge funds have a long history of predatory conduct and that conduct is entirely indefensible. Private funds preying on the pension funds of hard working Americans must be stopped. Private funds engaging in predatory short selling to the detriment of other investors must be stopped. Private funds engaging in vulture strategies that hurt workers must be stopped.
“Addressing that predatory and manipulative conduct is the responsibility of lawmakers and securities regulators who are charged with protecting investors and ensuring that our capital markets are fair, orderly, and efficient. As a first step in reining in these abusive practices, I will convene a hearing to examine the recent activity around GameStop (GME) stock and other impacted stocks with a focus on short selling, online trading platforms, gamification and their systemic impact on our capital markets and retail investors.
“We must deal with the hedge funds whose unethical conduct directly led to the recent market volatility and we must examine the market in general and how it has been manipulated by hedge funds and their financial partners to benefit themselves while others pay the price.”
The hearing will be live-streamed on the House Committee’s website.
Expectations are for the US Senate to hold a hearing as well.