>If you can call a bunch of servers masquerading as a brokerage firm a business is it a good investment?
>WHAT ARE THE BARRIERS TO ENTRY TO THIS BUSINESS?
John,
The interesting thing to me is that anyone with a room full of computers, an idea, and a competitive business plan, can, and in fact such people are, creating real and viable businesses as we speak. So I'm not sure "masquerading...as a business" is an accurate portrayal of E*trade.
Barriers to entry are, fortunately for many, being lowered, not only for brokerage businesses, but for many businesses that don't require much in the way of real estate, manual labor and other physical resources.
The questions you raised are, nevertheless, important ones. I would hope anyone who invests in E*trade would assess such questions. Personally, I don't have the answers, and haven't tried to get the answers. I have no position in EGRP, and don't plan to any time soon. But I would guess that reasonable people could certainly make a strong case for shorting E*trade right now, just as many other reasonable people might come to the opposite conclusion.
Ice |
