<p><img src="https://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5f198f95191824285157902a-2400/gettyimages-1190011009.jpg" border="0" alt="TD Ameritrade" data-mce-source="Justin Sullivan/Getty Images" data-mce-caption="A pedestrian walks by a TD Ameritrade office on November 25, 2019 in San Francisco, California."></p><p></p><bi-shortcode id="summary-shortcode" data-type="summary-shortcode" class="mceNonEditable" contenteditable="false">Summary List Placement</bi-shortcode><p>Ameritrade has restricted access to GameStop, AMC, and "other securities" as retail traders continue to send the markets for a loop.</p><p>"In the interest of mitigating risk for our company and clients, we have put in place several restrictions on some transactions in $GME, $AMC, and other securities. We made these decisions out of an abundance of caution amid unprecedented market conditions and other factors," Ameritrade said in a statement.</p><p><em><strong>Read more:</strong> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-sports-betting-picks-growth-industry-morgan-stanley-2021-1'utm_source=markets&utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MORGAN STANLEY: Buy these 9 sports-betting stocks ahead of the industry's expected legalization in 12 states this year and its growth to $10 billion in 2025</a></em></p><p>Ameritrade saw "unprecedented volumes" on Wednesday after retailer traders piled into heavily-shorted stocks.</p><p>The platform announced in a tweet that its <a href="https://twitter.com/TDAmeritrade/status/1354447688205443076's=20&source=content_type%3Areact%7Cfirst_level_url%3Anews%7Csection%3Amain_content%7Cbutton%3Abody_link">mobile app had crashed</a> due to the surge. About an hour later, it tweeted <a href="https://twitter.com/TDAmeritrade/status/1354458406942347270's=20&source=content_type%3Areact%7Cfirst_level_url%3Anews%7Csection%3Amain_content%7Cbutton%3Abody_link">the problem had been resolved</a> and apologized to customers for the inconvenience.</p><p>Ameritrade was one of several platforms, including Robinhood and E*Trade, that experienced outages as the number of retail trades soared in a wild day for the markets.</p><p>The trading platforms' problems largely stem from Reddit's WallStreetBets crowd, which now boasts over 2.2 million members.</p><p>Traders on the platform are betting against short-sellers hoping to cause <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/how-retail-option-traders-are-supercharging-the-short-squeeze-in-gamestop-and-other-potential-bubble-stocks-1030006793">short and gamma-squeeze</a> conditions that lead to monumental near-term price appreciation.</p><p>The most talked-about name in the Reddit trade has been GameStop. Shares of the once-forgotten retailer have <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/gamestop-stock-climbs-reddit-fueled-rally-continues-2021-1-1030004902'utm_source=markets&utm_medium=ingest">skyrocketed more than 1,200%</a> since WallStreetBets first piled in on January 11. The move cost short-sellers <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/gamestop-short-sellers-squeezed-losses-reddit-traders-army-cohen-palihapitiya-2021-1-1030006226'utm_source=markets&utm_medium=ingest">billions of dollars in losses </a>in just a few weeks.</p><p>Now the phenomenon has gone mainstream, and trading platforms are struggling to to keep up with the retail volumes.</p><p><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/ameritrade-restricts-trading-gamestop-amc-trading-platforms-struggle-historic-volume-2021-1-1030011248#comments">Join the conversation about this story »</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/transgender-activist-former-white-house-intern-sarah-mcbride-isnt-discouraged-by-trump-2018-3">Sarah McBride made history becoming the first openly trans person elected to a state Senate seat. In 2018, she explained why the Trump administration wouldn't discourage her work.</a></p>
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