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84% of all stocks are owned by the 10% richest in America. It really does only benefit the already rich. It's ignorant to think people with 401k's or retirement

84% of all stocks are owned by the 10% richest in America. It really does only benefit the already rich. It's ignorant to think people with 401k's or retirement plans are gaining any real money. It's rigged for the rich, I promise. http://time.com/money/5054009/stock-ownership-10-percent-richest/ http://time.com/money/5054009/stock-ownership-10-percent-ric...

spork12 8y ago
It's rigged for the rich because with more capital to invest you can lower your risk. Joe six pack with $50k to invest is going to be at a disadvantage against players with millions who can hedge their positions with options and diversify.
- refurb 8y ago
  Joe six pack can buy Vanguard's total stock market ETF with only a few hundred dollars. Fully diversified in terms of equity.
- tryptophan 8y ago
  Completely false. You can get exposure to every stock in the world for like ~$80. You can buy options to hedge for as little as ~$1000(literally the same ones that billionaires would buy). Joe six pack's biggest problem is their own ignorance.
zaroth 8y ago
If a poor person invests 10% of their money in the S&P500 no-load index fund, do they see different IRR than the billionaire who invests 10% of their money in the S&P500 no-load index fund? No system has ever provided such high quality, low cost financial instruments with great liquidity and marginal trading costs accessible to anyone with a checking account. The financial markets we have today are equitable and highly accessible. They are anything but rigged.
- astral303 8y ago
  The fact that you can put together a sentence that says "if a poor person invests 10% of their money" betrays that you have no actual understanding of poor people economics.
  - zaroth 8y ago
    I worded it that way specifically. Even if you have $10 in your pocket, you can take $1 and go invest it on Robinhood and see the same return as everyone else. That is actually pretty impressive. Now, you have to have enough money to buy a full share of whatever company you want. So Amazon has a minimum buy-in of about $1,900. One good argument for stock splits is that it makes your stock more accessible. I don’t know what you mean by “poor people economics” but it sounds like you think saving and investing is beyond their reach. I disagree and I think it betrays more about you than I. There are certainly times when spending all (or even in excess of all) your annual income is a rational and smart decision. But no matter what your income level, it is always true that some years you must save money aside from paying down loans. The market is irrelevant for a vanishingly small number of people. The market is ignored by a large percentage of people who could benefit greatly from it. I’m well aware most people don’t have $500 in their bank account. I would argue that makes equitable market access more important.
refurb 8y ago
It's ignorant to think people with 401k's or retirement plans are gaining any real money. What? That's the key method by which people pay for their retirement. Of course they are gaining real money.
frockington 8y ago
What? The market went up 25% last year even when tracked using "real money"

spork12 8y ago

It's rigged for the rich because with more capital to invest you can lower your risk. Joe six pack with $50k to invest is going to be at a disadvantage against players with millions who can hedge their positions with options and diversify.

refurb 8y ago
Joe six pack can buy Vanguard's total stock market ETF with only a few hundred dollars. Fully diversified in terms of equity.
tryptophan 8y ago
Completely false. You can get exposure to every stock in the world for like ~$80. You can buy options to hedge for as little as ~$1000(literally the same ones that billionaires would buy). Joe six pack's biggest problem is their own ignorance.

zaroth 8y ago

If a poor person invests 10% of their money in the S&P500 no-load index fund, do they see different IRR than the billionaire who invests 10% of their money in the S&P500 no-load index fund? No system has ever provided such high quality, low cost financial instruments with great liquidity and marginal trading costs accessible to anyone with a checking account. The financial markets we have today are equitable and highly accessible. They are anything but rigged.

astral303 8y ago
The fact that you can put together a sentence that says "if a poor person invests 10% of their money" betrays that you have no actual understanding of poor people economics.
- zaroth 8y ago
  I worded it that way specifically. Even if you have $10 in your pocket, you can take $1 and go invest it on Robinhood and see the same return as everyone else. That is actually pretty impressive. Now, you have to have enough money to buy a full share of whatever company you want. So Amazon has a minimum buy-in of about $1,900. One good argument for stock splits is that it makes your stock more accessible. I don’t know what you mean by “poor people economics” but it sounds like you think saving and investing is beyond their reach. I disagree and I think it betrays more about you than I. There are certainly times when spending all (or even in excess of all) your annual income is a rational and smart decision. But no matter what your income level, it is always true that some years you must save money aside from paying down loans. The market is irrelevant for a vanishingly small number of people. The market is ignored by a large percentage of people who could benefit greatly from it. I’m well aware most people don’t have $500 in their bank account. I would argue that makes equitable market access more important.

refurb 8y ago

It's ignorant to think people with 401k's or retirement plans are gaining any real money. What? That's the key method by which people pay for their retirement. Of course they are gaining real money.

frockington 8y ago

What? The market went up 25% last year even when tracked using "real money"