Zocker, die auf Kredit spekulieren. Wenn sie auf einmal panisch verkaufen, haben wir riesigen Sell-Off. Das Jahr 2000 läßt grüßen.
NASD warns of hazards of buying stocks on margin
WASHINGTON -- Securities regulators are warning investors about the risks of buying stocks with loans from their brokerage firm, a practice known as buying on margin that has proliferated recently.
The National Association of Securities Dealers, the brokerage industry's self-policing group, has issued an investor alert on the risks of margin trading, in which investors put up the securities they are buying as collateral for the loan.
The arrangement can lead to margin calls, in which investors are asked to come up with more money to meet the minimum equity requirement of the loan or risk liquidation of their accounts, the NASD said.
Investors potentially could lose more money than what they borrowed or what they bought the securities for.
Purchases of securities on margin jumped 25 percent in the first seven months of the year, to $174.4 billion in July, up from $143.9 billion in July 2002, according to the National Association of Securities Dealers.
Buying on margin from brokerage and day-trading firms ballooned during the stock market boom that ended in early 2001, frequently exceeding $200 billion a month.
"NASD wants to alert investors to the potential risks involved with the use of margin -- and the consequences that can result from its use," said Mary Schapiro, the organization's vice chairman and president of regulatory policy and oversight.
Among the consequences: Investors who cannot satisfy margin calls can have large portions of their accounts liquidated under market conditions -- favorable or unfavorable -- at the time of the call, potentially resulting in substantial losses.
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