Republican senator Ted Cruz and Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are among the elected officials calling for Robinhood to explain its decision to suspend trading of Gamestop, AMC and other securities before Congress.
"We now need to know more about @RobinhoodApp's decision to block retail investors from purchasing stock while hedge funds are freely able to trade the stock as they see fit. As a member of the Financial Services Cmte, I'd support a hearing if necessary," Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a tweet. Cruz then agreed with Cortez in a tweet of his own. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that Congress would be scrutinizing Robinhood's move, as did President Biden's administration.
After days of skyrocketing value for Gamestop stock spurred by retail traders on the r/WallStreetBets subreddit, Robinhood and WeBull (a Chinese competitor) have now prohibited users from buying more of the stock, though some Robinhood users can still sell. By prohibiting users from purchasing more, Robinhood and other trading platforms have effectively put a temporary cap on Gamestop value in a move that has almost no historical precedent.
"We need more regulation and equity in the markets," California Rep. Ro Khanna wrote in a public statement condemning Robinhood's move.
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE