The stock exchange (Wall Street) is not a quiet savings account but a rotating market of companies with real bankruptcy risk. It is designed as a skill casino: players who read the market well profit; players who gamble blindly can lose their stake. The exchange is not a money printer — loss is a genuine part of the game.
Three risk profiles
You trade companies with a Stable, Growth or High risk profile. Stable has small price movements and does not go bankrupt during normal market updates. Growth and High risk can rise or fall more sharply and can go bankrupt. Choose a profile that matches the loss you can afford.
Buying and selling
- Buy low, sell high — the classic principle. Prices move with supply and demand.
- Order impact — your own buy and sell orders affect the price: buying big drives the price up, selling big pushes it down.
- Immediate selling — there is no waiting period between buying and selling. A quick sale can still lose money through price impact and fees.
- Trading fees — you pay 0.3% when buying and 0.3% when selling. Sales also incur 0.4% tax on the gross proceeds, with a minimum tax of $1.
Bankruptcy
If a company goes bankrupt, your shares disappear and a recovery payment goes to your bank: 55% of your investment including purchase fees for Growth, or 40% for High risk. You lose the rest. A new company takes its place; you do not receive replacement shares in it.
Tools and limits
- Positions — you can hold shares in up to three companies at once. Each company also has supply and holding limits, shown on the exchange.
- Weekly cap — once your net realized weekly profit reaches the displayed limit, further purchases are blocked for that week. Selling remains possible, even if it takes you above the limit. Losses reduce your weekly total.