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Internet Stock TradingJust as it has made a profound change on other segments of American society, the Internet has sparked a revolution in the way the small investor buys and sells stocks, and to a lesser extent, bond and futures contracts. The growth of online trading is a result of the spread of Internet technology, the equity bull market, and lower interest rates, which drove the small investor out of fixed-income instruments in search of greater returns. As small investors flocked to the equity markets, they also sought the most inexpensive way to enter and exit. < Read More > As many as 7 million investors now conduct their stock transactions online, bypassing the more expensive full-service brokerage firms and paying only a fraction of their fees. Projections show the volume of online trading rising in coming years. The big brokerage firms are playing catchup, announcing plans to set up their own electronic trading operations, even though some were denouncing it as recently as late 1998. Alternative trading systems, such as electronic communications networks (ECNs), are not only putting pressure on brokerage firms, they're challenging the traditional securities exchanges as well. Additional online trading operations are likely to spring up, particularly if the bull market continues its run. Regulators, such as the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), have recognized that electronic trading isn't a fad, but is a change in the fundamental way of doing business in financial services that must be accommodated. SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt has emphasized the importance of the changing marketplace. In a September, 1999, speech in New York City, Levitt said: Let us not look back at this time as an opportunity not seized, an endeavor not realized, a challenge not taken, or a frontier not explored. Wc should not indiscriminately jettison the features of yesterday any more than we should allow entrenched interests to stonewall new market entrants and technologies that offer us superior efficiencies. Only by embracing change, renouncing obstructive impediments, and harnessing innovation and competition will we guarantee to our investors, our economy, and our nation the world's most successful capital markets. If you continue to use conventional trading methods, you will continue to get the same result. Why not check out an up to date method that really works in today's fast moving markets? You owe it to yourself to examine the stock assault System today! < Read More > |
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