Investing in Today's Market with Bill Brewster

The investment world is experiencing a unique cultural moment. Between the frictionless brokerage experience Robinhood offers, the rise of TikTok showcasing 30-second videos of questionable investment advice, and Reddit channels uniting thousands of individual investors at once, investing has never been more accessible to so many. But are the lessons that new investors are taking away from these experiences good? Joining 7investing founder Simon Erickson and lead advisor Matthew Cochrane to discuss these phenomena is returning guest Bill Brewster, the podcaster extraordinaire who serves as the host of The Business Brew and a co-host of the Value: After Hours. The three first look at Robinhood, the popular brokerage app used by so many new investors. Yes, a brokerage company’s main duty is to act as a middleman that connects buyers and sellers of stocks, bonds, and other assets. But beyond facilitating trades, the three co-hosts discuss several areas where Robinhood seemingly falls far short of ideal: Cochrane points out that Robinhood does not support Roth or traditional IRAs, two types of retirement accounts that feature extremely beneficial characteristics to American investors. Erickson takes aim at how the brokerage makes money, through the controversial practice of taking payments for order flows. Brewster highlights Robinhood's lack of customer support, telling a powerful personal story that drives the point home. The three also discuss the Gamestop (NYSE:GME) saga and the driving forces behind it. They wrap up the conversation addressing Michael Burry's recent tweets on inflation, including how investors can best position their portfolios to prepare for it.