How-to: Gamification and Exchange Trading

In the past few years, no one has been surprised by the game mechanics who use, including financial organizations. Some banks are actively engaged in the implementation of gamification - they create games that can stimulate users to make purchases, order new banking services, provide recommendations to friends, or simply increase the level of financial literacy.

Organizations involved in trading on the exchange also follow this path - game mechanics are implemented by the exchanges themselves, brokers, and even third-party application developers. This allows some companies to increase the activity of traders, increase trading volume and earn profits from commissions, while others earn on training. Moreover, sometimes game developers and even conference organizers introduce elements of exchange trading to increase the involvement of players and visitors to the event.

In our material today there are several such game examples from foreign and domestic practice.

Financial Literacy Apps

One of the most famous examples of the combination of gamification and exchange technology is the TradeHero application . Created by Singapore-based developers from MyHero, the application allows users to practice their work on the exchange without risk of losing real money.



The user who downloads the application receives $ 100 thousand on the virtual account and can buy shares whose price repeats real market fluctuations. The creators of the application call it "a tool to improve financial literacy." The application has a standings that show the results of traders - getting around others and making better money is an excellent incentive to better understand issues of trading on the exchange.

Another similar application is BUX. Its creators declare that they want to bring “more fun” to the exchange learning process. Application users receive step-by-step instructions on how to search for stocks for investments, how to buy and sell them, competing with other users, and also educates them in the professional jargon of traders.



Unlike TradeHero, BUX has the ability to make transactions for real money; users can switch to real trading when they feel confident in their actions.

Gamification of virtual trading through a broker

Many brokerage companies provide their customers with test access to the exchange. The goal here is the same as in the case of specialized mobile applications - it is beneficial for the broker to let his customers enter the real market more prepared and, as a result, save their money longer by making transactions and transferring commissions to the broker, rather than “pouring out” the deposit at first time.

You can stimulate the desire to learn more about the financial market with the help of game mechanics - everything is just like in applications. We at ITinvest created a special competition called the "League of Traders". There is both a “ combat ” version of it, where users reveal the results of trading on selected accounts, and a test versionwhere users of the test trading circuit compete with each other.

Real Exchange Competitions

In addition to educational applications, there are cases of the introduction of game mechanics in the actual process of real exchange trading. For example, the Moscow Exchange has been holding the contest “ Best Private Investor ” for many years in Russia , during which traders compete with each other in various categories when trading on the stock, derivatives and foreign exchange markets.

As a rule, the competition is held according to the following scheme - participants agree to open the result of their financial transactions on a special account registered for the competition. The winner is the one who in the allotted time has increased his capital in the most ambitious way. Winners receive prizes from the Exchange, as well as from brokers through whom they work in the market.

The purpose of the Exchange in conducting such a competition is to increase the activity and volume of trading, and hence earnings on commissions. As for brokers, they can also count on additional earnings, in addition, the presence of winning customers is a plus from the point of view of marketing and attracting new users. For example, ITinvest offers cash awards or a six-month free rack space rental for its customers who are winners of this year's competition, this is useful for those who want to place a trading robot closer to the core of the exchange's trading system.

Finances in games - GTA V experience

Car theft shooting is far from the only challenges a player faces in GTA V. Developers have introduced the ability to commit financial fraud on virtual exchanges.

Two exchanges are available in the game - Liberty City National (LCN) and BAWSAQ, each with its own list of available stocks, tickers and indicators. You can trade on these platforms using the browser on your smartphone. The situation on exchanges intersects with the game plot - the names of many companies trading on LCN and BAWSAQ often sound on the radio in stolen cars, or their ads could be seen moving around the city. And even more interestingly, a player can influence the value of shares through his actions in real life. For example, if you defeat the store of a company that is trading on gaming exchanges, the price of its shares will fall.



The topic of trading on such virtual platforms even interested journalists of specialized publications - for example, the editor of The Wall Street Journal wrote a detailed article listing the tried and tested ways of making money on gaming exchanges.

Increased involvement of hacker contestants

At one of the international hacking events that took place not so long ago in Moscow, the organizers also introduced elements of trading on the exchange into one of the hacking contests. CTF competitions involve the struggle of different teams of hackers - they must attack opponents and defend their infrastructure.

A common element that united all contests within CTF was a special exchange. It traded shares of various companies - a mobile operator, a bank and so on. Each company has its own competition - hacking an ATM or cellular network. Hackers could attack these companies, after which the shares fell in price, which opened up opportunities for speculation - the money earned were points that were added to the team’s piggy bank, bringing them closer to victory.