Hedge funds had placed massive amounts of "shorts" on GameStop - meaning they expected the stock price to go down and placed bets to make a profit if they did.

When Redditors got word of this, they bought A LOT of GameStop stock - through broker platforms like Robinhood that allow "regular" people to participate in the stock market- to increase the price, which would cause the hedge funds to lose money on their shorts.

Amidst the frenzy and complaints from hedge funds who lost a lot of money, Robinhood banned purchases of GameStop stock. Meanwhile institutional investors like hedge funds could continue to buy and short GameStop stock.

By stopping the purchase of GameStop stock, Robinhood caused the stock price to drop significantly - thereby almost guaranteeing losses for a lot of their investors while benefitting the hedge funds that had bet against GameStock.

In response to the controversy, Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) stated, "We’re done letting hedge fund billionaires treat the stock market like their personal playground, then taking their ball home as soon as they lose. We need more regulation and equality in the markets."

There are multiple questions and ideas being raised, including regulation and taxation of hedge fund short sells (since they bet on companies going under) and regulation for when a a broker can ban purchases to prevent such unequal access in the future.