There's no protection from greedy banks look at the jpmorgan recent trade that wiped out 3-5bn?
I remember one of the investment banks I had my money at changed hands 3-5 times while I had stocks there.
Stock Market is supposed to be regulated and have protections for individual investors it clearly doesn't.
I'd rather have real estate, commodities, and maybe bonds.
What are you talking about? Of course the stock market has protection for individual investors; why do you think the leverage ratio available for standard contracts was reduced to 2:1r? It was for the average joe's protection. Y'all literally fukked up the game for us that take it seriously, now we have to invest in derivative markets if we want to trade with a decent amount of leverage.
The truth is people think organisation and security analysis is easy, when it is far from that, and they go in thinking they know what they're talking about/doing and end up getting burnt.
Stick to your day jobs, stock trading isn't just a "side hustle", i find it insulting that people even refer to it as that, it's a science that takes years of study to even scratch. If you've never read a Benjamin graham book, if you've never studied financial analysis/econometric at college, if you've never studied the market extensively in your own personal time, if you don't understand macroeconomics, if you can't read and understand financial statements like a children's book, or if you already have professional commitments, stay away from the stock market and just deposit your money in a bank or invest in government bonds (i wouldn't even recommend that), because it's not for you.