By Alexander Osipovich

Five years ago, one of the wildest rallies in stock-market history came to a controversial halt.

GameStop was the original meme stock. Frenetic trading in the company's shares helped create the retail-investing ethos that has more recently fueled big gains in artificial-intelligence stocks and silver.

On Jan. 28, 2021, shares of the videogame retailer hit an intraday high of $483, after they had been trading below $20 at the start of the month. Legions of retail investors had fueled the rally, stoked by influencers such as Keith Gill, a.k.a. "Roaring Kitty," and a desire to squeeze short-selling hedge funds that had bet against GameStop.

The same day, however, Robinhood Markets infuriated many of its customers by removing their ability to buy new shares of GameStop. Robinhood-along with E*Trade, Webull and other brokers-put GameStop, AMC Entertainment and other meme stocks in a mode where investors could only hold or sell. GameStop slid 44% that day. Outraged lawmakers demanded hearings.

Robinhood said its hand was forced by a $3 billion margin call from the clearinghouse for the U.S. stock market. A 2022 report from Democratic staff on the House Financial Services Committee largely confirmed that explanation, while also showing that Robinhood was ill-prepared for the trading frenzy.

Still, many investors have blamed short sellers or electronic market-makers for hitting the brakes on GameStop. "Dumb Money," a 2023 Hollywood movie, made Gill its hero and depicted real-life Wall Street figures as the episode's villains.

During the five years through Tuesday, GameStop's share price has fallen 72% after accounting for a 2022 split.

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January 28, 2026 07:20 ET (12:20 GMT)

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