(Note language in paragraph 6 that readers may find offensive)
By Suzanne McGee and Saqib Iqbal Ahmed
(Reuters) – A report on Monday that online broker E*Trade may consider banning Keith Gill, the meme stock influencer who fueled frenzied trading in GameStop shares in 2021, has sparked a backlash on social media sites .
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that E*Trade is considering banning Gill, who has returned to posting online in recent weeks after a three-year hiatus.
E*Trade parent company Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the report and social media posts calling for a boycott of the brokerage platform.
Brokers have drawn the ire of retail customers in the past, most notably in 2021 when Robinhood came under fire after limiting purchases of certain heavily traded stocks, including GameStop, due to volatility.
“@etrade selected their own client @TheRoaringKitty and took marching orders from a smoke-filled back room somewhere and tried to say, “No, you’re not getting rich, you’re not allowed to join the elites,” X user @welp007 commented Monday night posted.
Many of those commenting on the latest twist in the Roaring Kitty/Gamestop saga referenced their perception that the Roaring Kitty episode serves as an example of the way major Wall Street players, from hedge funds to trading firms, take advantage of small retail stores. investors.
Several posters on both Reuters could not independently verify the authenticity of the screenshots and the posters did not respond to requests for comment.
“If they ban the cat, the entire retail industry will have to leave their platform,” said Reddit user FalseDifficulty2340.
Posters also suggested that the company’s rivals would likely welcome Gill as a customer if E*Trade removed Gill from its platform.
(Reporting by Suzanne McGee and Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; Editing by Megan Davies and Josie Kao)