Why this matters
Most retail stock orders never reach a public exchange. Instead they are sold, through payment for order flow, to a small group of wholesalers who internalize them off-exchange and decide behind closed doors what price you get. The system is marketed as "free" trading with "price improvement," but it profits by inserting a middleman between you and the real market, and it pulls trading away from the transparent, competitive venues that set fair prices for everyone.
Congress writes the rules for these markets and oversees the SEC. Your representatives need to hear from the people they actually work for: individual investors who want transparent, competitive pricing and a real guarantee of best execution. It's time to remind Congress who they work for.
How to have your voice heard
- Look up your members of Congress, both in the House and the Senate, using the tools below.
- Call or write their office. Not sure what to say? Use the sample script below. Please be kind when you reach out. We're trying to influence the process, not make enemies.
- Share it on social media. Let everyone know you got involved and encourage them to do the same. Use the hashtag #WeTheInvestors or tag us at @WeTheInvestors_.
Find your reps
Look up your members of Congress, then call or write their office using the sample script.
Sample script for calling, emailing, or mailing
Hi, I'm [name] from [town]. Thank you for your time. I'm contacting you because I'm concerned about how the U.S. stock market treats individual investors. Most retail orders are routed off-exchange to a small number of wholesalers through payment for order flow, rather than competing openly on public exchanges. This lets middlemen profit from my trades while I have little visibility into whether I received a fair price. I urge you to support transparent, competitive markets and strong best-execution and order-protection rules that guarantee investors the best publicly available price. Thank you for representing our interests.