White House press secretary Jen Psaki declined to give a comment in response to a host of questions involving Wall Street volatility Thursday, including whether the Biden administration is contemplating action against Robinhood and some other trading platforms blocking trades for some stocks.
Psaki did point reporters to a statement issued Wednesday by acting Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Allison Herren Lee that noted the SEC is “actively monitoring” the situation involving certain stocks, including GameStop and AMC. (RELATED: Robinhood Halts Trading Of GameStop, AMC As Wall Street Backlash Continues)
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Traders filed a class action lawsuit Thursday against Robinhood in New York after multiple trading platforms halted purchases for GameStop, AMC, Blackberry, Nokia, Bed Bath & Beyond, Express Inc., KOSS Corp and Naked Brand.
Each of the aforementioned equities had been targeted on the Reddit forum r/wallstreetbets and had subsequently seen their share prices skyrocket.
The suit filed against Robinhood claims that the platform’s “actions were done purposefully and knowingly to manipulate the market for the benefit of people and financial intuitions who were not Robinhood’s customers.”
“Since pulling the stock from their app, GME prices have gone up, depriving investors of potential gains,” the complaint continues. “Additionally, in the event GME goes down, Robinhood has deprived investors of ‘shorting’ GME in the hopes the price drops.”