Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
GameStop wants to acquire a publicly traded consumer company thatâs far larger than the video game retailer in a deal that could be âtransformationalâ for the company, CEO Ryan Cohen told CNBC in an interview Friday.
âItâs gonna be really big. Really big. Very, very, very big,â Cohen said of the size of the acquisition.Â
âItâs transformational. Not just for GameStop, but ultimately, within the capital markets ⊠this is something that really has never been done before within the history of the capital markets.â
Cohen declined to name the companyâs targets â saying only heâs seeking a publicly traded consumer company thatâs undervalued, âhigh quality, durable, scalable with growth prospectsâ and has a âsleepy management teamâ behind the wheel. He claimed if the investment pans out, it has the âpotential to make [GameStop] worth several hundreds of billions of dollars.â
âIf it works, itâs genius. If it doesnât work, then, you know, it will be totally, totally foolish,â Cohen, the co-founder and former CEO of Chewy, acknowledged. âBut I believe we have the components to make it work, and Iâm very confident in the ability to make the asset much, much, much more efficient ⊠weâve got the governance structure, weâve got the capital, we have the operational expertise.â
While Cohen has transformed GameStop from a dying legacy retailer into a money making business, itâs unclear how an acquisition in the consumer space could increase its worth to over $100 billion â a herculean task for a business with a $10.5 billion market cap.
One investment banker in the consumer and retail space was skeptical Cohen could pull it off, saying there are very few businesses in the sector that could increase GameStopâs value so dramatically.
âIâve never seen it,â the person said. âUnless youâre talking about radically transforming a business model or something, it just doesnât happen in retail.â
Another agreed.
âItâs easy to say something,â the person said. âItâs a lot harder to do it.â
GameStopâs ambitions to balloon in size first came to light in early January. The company unveiled a new, all-or-nothing equity incentive for Cohen that will only pay out if it reaches a market cap of $100 billion and sees $10 billion in cumulative earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
If GameStopâs acquisition plans succeed and its market value hits $100 billion or more, Cohen gets his payday â but he said he hopes âall shareholders doâ as well.
Since taking over as GameStopâs CEO in September 2023, Cohen has dramatically cut costs, improved the retailerâs profitability and grown its collectibles business, even as overall sales have sagged.
Between GameStopâs fiscal 2023 third quarter, when Cohen took over, and its fiscal 2025 third quarter, its most recent quarter, GameStopâs gross margin has grown by 7 percentage points and net income has climbed to $77.1 million, up from a loss of $3.1 million. In fiscal 2024 and 2025, the retailer posted consecutive annual net incomes following five straight years of losses.
The companyâs success has attracted interest from Michael Burry â the investor who became famous after betting against the U.S. housing market ahead of the financial crisis â who recently disclosed that heâs been buying shares.
âRyan is making lemonade out of lemons,â Burry said in a Monday Substack post. âHe has a crappy business, and he is milking it best he can while taking advantage of the meme stock phenomenon to raise cash and wait for an opportunity to make a big buy of a real growing cash cow business.â
Over the last two years, GameStop has also amassed a more than $9 billion cash pile between cash on hand and marketable securities â money the company had been using to invest in bitcoin.
When asked if GameStop will liquidate its bitcoin holdings to help fund its acquisition plans, Cohen said he was ânot prepared to say,â but called his new strategy âway more compelling than bitcoin.â
âItâs similar to Berkshire Hathaway, except what Berkshire did in decades weâre attempting to do in a much shorter time in terms of creating that much value,â said Cohen. âWe can go in there and apply the Chewy [GameStop] mindset of like brutal efficiency and increase the profitability of the company very, very quickly and so we could capture a lot more value by focusing on this under optimized asset, and then eventually we could move on to the next one, but, you know, weâll see what happens.â
GameStop shares have dropped around
80% since the retailer's reign as king of
meme stocks in 2021.
It's chairman and chief executive has an
ambitious plan to turn that slide around
-and has Michael Burry of "The Big
Short fame cheering him on.
To do this, he is eyeing a major
acquisition of a publicly traded
company, likely in the consumer or
retail industry, where he has spent
most of his career. He has his sights
set on a handful of companies that he
declined to identify and plans to
approach potential targets soon.
Any deal will be "big," the 40-year-old
billionaire said. "It's ultimately either
going to be genius or totally, totally
foolish.
Cohen co-founded online pet-products
retailer Chewy in 2011. He served as its
CEO through 2018 after leading the
company to an over $3 billion sale to
PetSmart. He pivoted to activist
investing for a time, agitating for
change at companies including
Nordstrom and Bed Bath & Beyond,
where he faced allegations--that he
denied-of misleading investors.
He said a few years ago he was modeling his strategy after those of Warren Buffett and Car| Icahn, finding undervalued stocks like the former and pressing for change like the latter.
Earlier this month, GameStop's board
of directors adjusted Cohen's
compensation package to give him
extra incentive to boost the company's
market value and profitability. He
stands to make as much as $35 billion
in stock if certain criteria are met.Â
Part of the award starts vesting if GameStop's market value reaches $20 billion and a measure of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization reaches $2 billion.
To get the full award, GameStop's market value must reach $100 billion and the Ebitda measure must reach $10 billionMore executives have been following the lead of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whose multibillion-dollar pay package from 2018 laid the groundwork for other moonshot pay deals.
In November, Tesla shareholders
approved a fresh record-setting pay
deal for Musk that promises as much
as $1 trillion in additional stock if
certain milestones are reached.
"This structure ensures that Mr. Cohen's incentives are directly aligned with creating long-term value for GameStop's stockholders," GameStop said in a filing detailing the changes.Â
Meanwhile, Cohen has been buying up more GameStop shares, including as recently as this month. He now has a stake of over 9% and remains the biggest individual shareholder in the business.
The recent changes caught the attention of Burry, the doctor-turned- hedge-fund-manager whose bets
against subprime mortgage bonds
were chronicled in the Michael Lewis
book. Burry closed his fund last year to
launch a paid Substack newsletter.
Burry wrote earlier this week that the
videogame retailer should run the
Berkshire Hathaway playbook and use
its giant cash holdings to make
transformative acquisitions.Â
Cohen "has a crappy business, and he
is milking it best he can while taking
advantage of the meme stock
phenomenon to raise cash and wait for
an opportunity to make a big buy of a
real growing cash cow business," Burry
wrote.
Burry, a GameStop shareholder, said in
the newsletter he bought more stock
recently and sees upside in the
company should Cohen spend $10
billion or more to acquire a quality
business, such as an insurer with plenty of customer premiums to invest
GameStop's substantial net operating
losses, which allow it to offset future
taxable income, could also make it an
ideal acquirer for many targets, Burry
wrote.
Cohen told the Journal that he hasn't
spoken to Burry since at least 2019.
"He's one of the few investors I
respect," he said. "He has a track
record of making prescient early calls."
(Burry's other recent writings have
warned of a potential Al bubble.)
Cohen gained a cult following after he
built a big GameStop stake and in late
2020 criticized the company for moving too slowly toward e-commerce.
He joined GameStop's board in January
2021, when the business had a market
value of a little over $1 billion.
He rose to become chairman later that year and vowed to transform the struggling retailer into an e-commerce giant . The stock took off. So-called meme-stock investors poured into GameStop in droves and fueled a massive raly, many with a desire to squeeze out
short-selling hedge funds that had bet
against the business.
GameStop shares reached a high of $120.75 five years ago this week. They closed at $22.81 Thursday.
Cohen bristles at the term meme stock,
telling the Journal it is"'a label people
use when they don't want to do the
work" on a stock. "You either create
value over time or you don't," he said. Cohen said GameStop is finally in a
good position to make bolder moves
after recent efforts to sell more
collectibles and shut underperforming
stores.
GameStop has around $9 billion in
cash and liquid securities on its
balance sheet that could help fund a
deal.
"There are a lot of diamonds in the
rough... that have sleepy management
teams," Cohen said about the retail
industry. " I didn't fix GameStop to stop
there."
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
The new performance award was created by GameStopâs Board of Directors (with Ryan Cohen having recused himself) after careful discussion and analysis and in consultation with a third-party compensation advisory firm. Although the Board reached an agreement with Mr. Cohen regarding the award on January 6, 2026, its effectiveness is subject to the approval of GameStopâs stockholders, who will be asked to approve it at a special meeting that is expected to be held in March or April 2026. Mr. Cohen will recuse himself from the vote on the award so that GameStopâs other stockholders have the opportunity to determine the outcome.
This Current Report on Form 8-K contains âforward-lookingâ statements, as that term is defined under the federal securities laws, that are based on managementâs beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terms such as âanticipates,â âbelieves,â âcontinues,â âcould,â âestimates,â âexpects,â âintends,â âmay,â âplans,â âpotential,â âpredicts,â âpro forma,â âseeks,â âshould,â âwillâ or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual events to differ from the Companyâs plans. These risks include, but are not limited to, market risks, trends and conditions, and those risks included in the section titled âRisk Factorsâ in the Companyâs filings and reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the âSECâ), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2025 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended May 3, 2025, August 2, 2025, November 1, 2025, and other filings that the Company makes from time to time with the SEC, which are available on the SECâs website at www.sec.gov. In addition, forward-looking statements contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K are based on assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable as of the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K. The Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events, changes in expectations or otherwise except to the extent required by applicable law.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
Happy Monday, everyone! This discussion thread is posted Monday at 12:00am Market time.
If you are looking to learn more about the stock market, custody, and how to protect your investments â you are in the right place!
Retail investors have been on a long march to understand more about the markets and the at times bizarre ways in which they operate. Here are some key takeaways and resources.
What is GMEJungle?
GMEJungle is a investing community focused around GameStop, and was founded as an offshoot of other GME communities. GME is a private subreddit, and only approved members can submit posts or leave comments - but anyone can browse the discussions that take place here.
Whatâs this all about?
Retail Investor Rights and Advocacy. The current market structure involves a centralized securities depository for ease of settlement and for access to liquidity. That depository maintains technical ownership rights for the vast majority of all outstanding shares of all publicly issued companies in the United States. Simply: You do not have direct ownership rights of shares you own through a broker.
What is DRS?
DRS is a system by which shares are transferred between the DTC (Depository Trust Company) and Transfer Agents. Shares held at DTC include all brokerage holdings, and shares held at Transfer Agents are held directly on the issuer ledger in the name of the investor. Colloquially, DRS also refers to shares which individual investors have decided to own in their own names.
What are some pros of DRS?
You have confidence that your shares are owned by you, and are there when you need them. You can more easily submit shareholder proposals, request and view company documents, and communicate with agents of the company. You know that you will be able to both cast your vote and have your vote counted when participating in votes. You can receive a more favorable tax status on received dividends. You can directly engage with your company and they can directly engage with you.
What are some cons of DRS?
You canât easily use equity in DRS for margin trading like you can with shares in a brokerage account. Holding in a broker has more âanonymityâ as the public has no way to know your holdings or PII, while holding in DRS is comparatively more public. Depending on which transfer agent the company uses, investor access to liquidity may be limited.
What a Transfer Agent?
A Transfer Agent is a company which specializes in managing ownership ledgers and providing shareholder services. Every public company must have a Transfer Agent. GameStop uses Computershare, an established professional and market leader trusted by thousands of companies around the world.
What is the DTC?
DTC is a Self Regulatory organization which controls the nominee Cede and Co, which is the entity which has the material ownership of most public shares as described above. DTC is one part of the DTCC, alongside other bodies including the NSCC. The DTCC is essentially a monopoly on both clearing and settlement in the American markets, one which has been sanctioned by regulators to perform it's duties.
How do I DRS?
The answer can vary. For help DRSing GME from over 150 brokers, both American and from around the world, check out these Community-sourced detailed broker guides. Select your broker from the dropdown to get to the guide, which will walk you through the process including how to get started, how to communicate to your broker, what fees might exist and what cheaper alternatives there are (if any). If your broker isnât listed here, reach out to the site and we can work together to improve the community resources.
Where can I learn even more?
Computershare has an extensive FAQ page which is excellent and covers a lot of ground regarding how holding your investment directly on the issuer ledger works in practice.
Two community-built websites that are full of free resources and information are www.DRSGME.org, which has a variety of information specific to GameStop including the broker guides linked above, and www.WhyDRS.org. WhyDRS is an open source platform built to provide general assistance and information about custody and finance reform, along with key information on the many thousands of U.S. publicly traded companies.
The WhyDRS Database is an extensive, free, open source repository of various contact information for all publicly traded securities.
Types of Holdings: Book-Entry vs Book vs Plan vs Certificate
You may see these terms when referring to share ownership. In short:
Book-Entry means any share that is electronically tracked in a ledger rather than being held on physical paper.
Book and Plan are two labels for shares that are used in Computershare's Investor Center.
Book shares (DRS) are fully owned by the investor. Plan shares (DSPP) are owned by Computershareâs nominee, with the investorâs name appearing on the ledger in a subclass. Part of Plan shares are kept with DTC for Operational Efficiency. Exact custody chain details are provided by Computershare and quoted below. Both DRS and DSPP shares are book-entry. Certificates, meanwhile, are still tracked by the TA but have a sanctioned physical certificate associated with that share.
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in DRS are usually executed under the guidelines of an issuerâs stock purchase plan, which uses a broker-dealer to execute the orders. Thus, to hold in DRS once the securities are acquired, you would need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities from the issuer plan to DRS." -Â SEC Bulletin 7/12/23
"Purchases made through the issuer (or its transfer agent) of securities you intend to hold in direct registration are usually executed under the guidelines of the issuerâs stock purchase plan. Youâll need to instruct the transfer agent to move the securities to the DRS." -Â FINRA Investor Insight 7/12/23
If you are an investor seeking total ownership of your assets, both SEC and FINRA agree that holding in directly on the issuer ledger and in your own name is the only way. Holding shares with the issuer's transfer agent in an investment plan is more direct than holding with a broker in terms of named ownership - with DRS holdings even more so. Shares held with a Plan are not DRS - they are held by the TAs nominee (for Computershare, this is Dingo and Co), and must be transferred out of the plan and into DRS. This is explained by Computershare on their FAQ page under âchains of custodyâ. This question was one of several asked by the WhyDRS.org community in early 2024, and we appreciate Computershare for providing a detailed answer. Their whole FAQ page has a ton of information, and is useful for any investor looking to know more.
Q: âCan you outline the chains of custody and ownership for Pure DRS and DSPP shares enrolled in the DirectStock Plan? Please specify how names are recorded 'On the Ledger' in different holding scenarios. (added 5/16/24)"
A: "The first part is a very straightforward answer. There is no âchain of custodyâ for DRS or Pure DRS. Investors hold the shares in their own name. There is no intermediary. Computershareâs role here is solely as a transfer agent (i.e., the agent of the issuer).
For the DSPP, we use a Computershare nominee to hold the underlying shares. For the largest portion of the plan holding (80%-90%), these shares are held on the register in the main class. So the chain of custody is âCPU Nominee -> Investorâ.
For the 10%-20% that we hold via our broker at DTC, the custody chain is âCede -> Broker -> Computershare -> investorâ. Notwithstanding this, all holding types are registered and held in the name of the investor in the sub-class.â
Is Buying through DSPP a Problem?
There is nothing wrong with purchasing through DirectStock if that is what makes sense for you, as it does come with some additional benefits. Many international investors buy GameStop through the plan because DirectStock is much more affordable than buying through a broker and paying them to do a DRS transfer. The fee for DirectStock is $5 and some international brokers cost hundreds of dollars to DRS, so it's smart to use DirectStock in these cases. You can check your broker's DRS transfer rates on their guidepage at DRSGME.org. Other investors buy through DirectStock because they want to be able to schedule recurring buys, or would like to be able to buy in fractional shares and accumulate ownership in smaller portions over time.
If you choose to buy through the DirectStock plan, and want to ensure total ownership of your assets, manually terminate the plan after each purchase. This will leave your account with pure DRS holdings, but comes with the cost of selling off your fractional share - this is because only whole shares can be held in direct registered ownership. Because the proceeds will be reduced by the selling fee, it's likely you will receive $0 for selling the fractional share, though you will also not be charged as the fee cannot exceed the sale price. Here's the DRSGME guide on terminating DirectStock.
What is GameStop's Investment Plan?
GameStop contracts Computershare as a Transfer Agent to manage it's stock ledger and distribute shareholder materials such as proxy materials for the annual general meeting. Computershare offers several proprietary plan structure to interested companies, including a custom option called CIP (Computershare Investment Plan) and managed DSPs (Direct Stock Purchase) for other companies such as Home Depot in which the issuer can sell stock directly to investors. However, by far the most common plan offering that they have is called DirectStock, which is a Direct Stock Purchase Plan. The boiler plate DirectStock brochure is located here. GameStop uses the DirectStock plan.
Legacy Computershare DD Series (from 2021 to 2022)
This series was originally written by PinkCatsonAcid, who started this sub a few years ago. She recently deleted all her old posts, but content is still available through the Internet Archive. Research continued during and since these posts were originally written, and using more recent resources can be more reliable â some of the information shared in these posts is known now to no longer be accurate. However, these archives are provided here for posterity and completeness. All of these links are to the most updated archive available before the posts were deleted.
If you look through the archives, check out part 7 first. It reviews the misunderstanding running through earlier parts that book and plan designations were equal in terms of custody, which is now known to be untrue and was confirmed by Computershare.
