4/3/14 - Is the stock market rigged? Itâs a question being asked a lot this week after a 60 Minutes interview with author Michael Lewisâ about his new book Flash Boys, which details the role of high-frequency trading. But one local financial expert says the book only highlights what has always been true; investors have to be actively involved in how their portfolio is being handled. High-frequency traders use powerful computers to gain a microsecond advantage at stock exchanges, earning tiny profits on hundreds of thousands of transactions a day. Brighton-based Asset Management Specialist Robert Laura tells WHMI that while such advantages are legal, they undermine the publicâs trust in the markets. In a related article at Forbes.com, Laura writes that he has requested statements from two different trading platforms that he works with on the issue of high frequency trading and if options are available to work with stock exchanges which have developed potential solutions to level the playing field. Laura says that in the final analysis individual investors represent $19 trillion dollars in retirement savings and if the majority takes more active control and demands accountability, reform of the system is likely to follow. You can hear his full interview through the link below. (JK)
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