Finance&Economics, stock

Robinhood lifts trading restrictions on GameStop, AMC stock

Online trading platform Robinhood removed trading restrictions on shares of GameStop Corp. and AMC Entertainment Inc. late Thursday.

“There are currently no temporary limits to increasing your positions,” Robinhood’s website said Thursday night.

Last week, Robinhood sparked fury — and lawsuits — from some users by restricting trading of 50 highly volatile stocks that were heavily shorted. That list was whittled down to eight on Sunday, and by Thursday just GameStop and AMC remained. Earlier Thursday, GameStop had a 500-share purchase limit, while AMC had a 5,500-share limit.

The easing of restrictions comes as the massive wave that lifted GameStop, AMC and others appears to be crashing amid increasing regulatory scrutiny. After hitting an all-time high of $483 on Jan. 28, GameStop shares GME, -42.11% sank 42% on Thursday to close at $53.50, and are down 84% this week. AMC’s stock AMC, -20.96% is off 47% this week, closing Thursday down 21%, to $7.09.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen met with top financial regulators Thursday and vowed to protect investors and maintain “fair and efficient markets.”

The highly volatile trading was spurred by online commenters, especially on Reddit, who bought shares in a number of companies to spoil short-sellers’ positions.