Rep. Maxine Waters to Hold GameStop Hearing as 'First Step' to Stop 'Abusive Practices'

Democratic California Representative Maxine Waters, Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, has pledged to convene a hearing to examine "short-selling" and other stock market practices that have recently affected the video game retailer GameStop and other stocks.

This week, members of the subreddit r/WallStreetBets undermined hedge fund and investment firm short-sellers who had betted on GameStop's stock falling. Instead, subreddit members invested heavily into its stock, increasing its value by over 700 percent during the past week and causing the firms to lose billions.

"As a first step in reining in these abusive practices," Waters wrote in a statement released Thursday, "I will convene a hearing to examine the recent activity around GameStop (GME) stock and over impacted stocks with a focus on short-selling, online trading platforms, gamification and their systemic impact on our capital markets and retail investors."