Are traders part of the economy?
- ShaunWhite
- Posts: 9731
- Joined: Sat Sep 03, 2016 3:42 am
Insignificant in scale, and being an exchange then if "we" did well then others in the population wouldn't (net zero), so the only effect of a good year for us is larger Betfair profits from the extra commission, some of which are eventually distributed as dividends to overseas investors.
..in short no. We don't provide services or manufacture goods, or add value to anything. We have no product to contribute to the national "product".
..in short no. We don't provide services or manufacture goods, or add value to anything. We have no product to contribute to the national "product".
Potentially if you take money from someone who wasn't going to spend it and then spend it in the economy, but otherwise traders don't produce any product.
I suppose trading money in a pool of betting money is different to car dealers, art dealers and estate agents as they produce a middleman service to an extent. It's more like the stock market or foreign exchange.
Traders are traitors that take money from their fellow humans in a zero sum game but philosophically I don't see an issue with that, as it could be worse if we were weapons traders that supply guns to terrorists for a profit
I suppose trading money in a pool of betting money is different to car dealers, art dealers and estate agents as they produce a middleman service to an extent. It's more like the stock market or foreign exchange.
Traders are traitors that take money from their fellow humans in a zero sum game but philosophically I don't see an issue with that, as it could be worse if we were weapons traders that supply guns to terrorists for a profit