To: Jeff Jordan who wrote (12011 ) 7/23/1998 4:30:00 PM From: Jenna Respond to
Jeff and Brad Dryer from Silicon Investor were part of a roundtable discussion conducted on the Internet by WORTH magazine.For most of this century, individual investors would have been foolish to try to cross swords with better informed and better equipped Wall Street professionals. The smart strategy for amateurs was to acquire a few blue chips and hang on for a decade or more. Today, however an individual stock picker armed with a personal computer has better options, and the Internet is rapidly leveling the playing field between amateur and pro. To discuss this trend, we assembled a panel of some of the smartest minds behind the revolution in online investing: BRAD and JEFF DRYER from SILICON INVESTOR........ Koten: Are there any ways that you think the Internet might affect the behavior of Investors: Jeff Dryer: I think it is going to encourage individuals to take more risk with their investments. Instead of investing in mutual funds, Treasury bonds, and CDs, Internet users will more likely be attracted to individual stocks and derivatives, where the excitement and potential returns are much higher. There are fancy financial products the financial world hasn't even thought of yet that people will be attracted to in large numbers. Individual investors are becoming sophisticated investors very quickly.Koten: what impact do you think the Internet is going to have on financial-services companies? Jeff Dryer: I see the whole advice paradigm shifting. Financial experts and money managers will begin to ask their clients for direction <i.[ed. comment: I'm waiting for my next call from Hambrecht & Quist]..Brad Dryer: Investors are going to have to think for themselves. That means questioning every piece of information, no matter what the source is. If you are looking at a company balance sheet, it's safest to look at the company filing with the Securities and Exchange commission rather than rely on a third-party provider. When exchanging information and opinions with other investors, it's best to communicate with people you know rather than anonymous people.
