The stock market looks more like a slot machine

Investors keep lining up at the roulette wheel—and markets want them to take a spin.

It’s the age of casinofication: Investors now have access to prediction markets, 24-hour trading, AI-powered portfolios, perpetual futures, and more—all of which allows them to trade more frequently and with less friction than ever before.

Now, two new developments threaten to make markets look even more like a casino.

Neon capital

The SEC just made it easier for retail investors to access private markets, approving plans that expand how individuals can qualify as accredited investors—and letting them enter what was once an exclusive club, with opportunities for aggressive growth inside.

SEC chairman Paul Atkins framed it as democratization: With the growth of private markets, gaining access to “one of the great engines of American enterprise” should “not be reserved for the wealthiest or for those deemed to be the most sophisticated,” he said in a statement.

But accessing private markets introduces everyday investors to complex options that can be hard to assess. Some private investments can also restrict investor redemptions, locking traders in and preventing them from easily withdrawing their money—even if the investment is tanking.

In short: The rewards go up, but so do the risks.

Robinhood after hours

The SEC’s decision comes a day after Robinhood announced new features that reduce trading friction—and invite more casino-lite habits.

Robinhood is expanding trading hours, allowing customers to trade certain US equities 24/7 and on weekends. Plus, it’s rolling out new features like advanced AI-powered trading tools. More than 150,000 customers have already opened agentic AI trading accounts so far—which can translate to more frequent betting rather than measured investing decisions.

A new class of customers has grown accustomed to low fees and easy access, and now they want to trade across more markets and more hours. The name of the game now is speed and automation—and with regulators opening the door to riskier types of investments, the market is looking more and more like Vegas every day.—GR