Dark Pools was published in 2012, but its warnings echo louder today. Since the release of the book, figures like Brad Katsuyama (hero of Michael Lewis’s similar book, Flash Boys ) have attempted to build safer exchanges, and regulators have imposed minor restrictions.

They were designed to let institutional investors (like pension funds) trade large blocks of stock without tipping off the market and causing the price to crash or spike.

The rigging of the US stock market has significant implications for investors and the broader economy. When machine traders use dark pools to manipulate market prices, innocent investors may lose money by buying or selling securities at artificially inflated or deflated prices. This can erode trust in the financial markets, which can have broader economic implications.