This framing makes the whole thing sound like a nefarious plot, but I suspect the reality is more simple: you can't pump-and-dump a lottery, the draw is tightly

This framing makes the whole thing sound like a nefarious plot, but I suspect the reality is more simple: you can't pump-and-dump a lottery, the draw is tightly controlled. The parts of the penny stock / meme stock world that are drawing lots of negative attention right now are the online communities where anonymous people are giving plenty of "not financial advice" and disclaiming it away with a statement like "do your own DD" (due diligence). Obviously, yes, you should do your own due diligence when acting on a stock tip from a stranger. But even that assumes that the stranger's tip was made in good faith, and wasn't just designed to help them unload something they bought and want to get rid of profitably by hyping a market to unsavvy buyers. With a lotto, you can see the projected winnings, know the draw date, and usually even know how many other people are buying tickets. With penny stocks from reddit, there's a decent chance the guy offering the tip about which stock to buy plans to exit long before his target price, because he strung together a plausible hype pitch to trick you into getting stuck holding the bag. The state is usually prevented from lying about possible winnings to sell more lotto tickets. I'm not sure whether more regulation for retail investors is a good thing or not. But I do think it isn't a very genuine comparison to say that regulating financial markets is a farce because lotteries exist, there is much more information asymmetry in retail stock trades.