Gamestop, Dogecoin and the male identity crisis

In recent years, two assets:GameStop shares AND Dogemoneta on the cryptocurrency side, they have become the symbol of a new form of reckless investment. Both have had several weeks where their price increased 100% or more without any fundamental value proposition. Sure, there have been catalysts for various GME and DOGE rallies – typically a pump signal from Roaring Kitty or Elon Musk – but there’s also a deeper, and somewhat troubling, explanation for what’s going on: a crisis of male identity.

I’ve weighed similar thoughts over the ten years I’ve been covering cryptocurrencies, but the new book The Trolls of Wall Street addresses the case explicitly. The book is mostly about the guys behind r/WallStreetBets, the Reddit forum where a community of mostly young people gathered to share stock research and advice and, over time, fueled some of the craziest rallies in history.

The book is about the stock market, but its insights also apply to cryptocurrencies, which is appropriate since the author, Nathaniel Popper, is a former Bitcoin reporter. Popper is sympathetic to his subjects and is quick to point out that, in many cases, the r/WallStreetBets audience was better informed than the hedge fund barons who belittled them. In exploring their lives and motivations, however, Popper also identifies a common thread that led many of the participants to make nihilistic financial gambles and, in some cases, to embrace some of the worst sexist and racist jokes on the Internet.

That common thread is the very human one of needing a place to belong and feel appreciated. The Trolls of Wall Street describes how many young people in the r/WallStreetBets forum, as is the case with any cryptocurrency forum, have lived unfulfilling lives and instead of starting a career or a family or doing the other things that come with being an adult, they have remained stalled and unable to thrive in the larger world. At the same time, young women are doing better than ever in terms of education, income and career advancement.

In this context, Reddit and crypto forums gave young people the chance to engage in inappropriate banter and express the kind of competitive, aggressive behavior that felt natural, even if the outside world wanted no part of it. It was also in these forums that great achievements such as overtaking billion-dollar hedge funds and building successful blockchains took place. They provided communities where men – and, of course, some women – could build something, for better or worse.

Which brings us back to GameStop and Dogecoin. Both are a terrible place to invest your money because they are building very little value, yet they still have legions of mostly young men who will support them anyway out of loyalty to their online community. That’s fine, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that most would be happier seeking more traditional forms of male validation instead. You may have a different opinion. If you want a longer version of the book, check it out my review and that of Leone Questions and answers with Popper.

Jeff John Roberts
jeff.roberts@fortune.com
@jeffjohnroberts

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