A myth started several years ago and still floats around concerning the origin of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). The myth goes that the idea of the Bank popped up at a poker game where important men in the Valley got together during one of their outings to play their favorite game. Like a good poker game, the story was told with a straight face. And, as in any good poker game, someone is bluffing. A bluff is a hand that is not the best hand but possesses the power to induce at least one opponent with a better hand to fold first. The poker game origin of SVB is a good bluff perpetuated by SVB’s video clips posted on YouTube.1

Autonomy is the concept of self-rule, or the ability to control our personal choices. This chapter starts with a discussion of the dubious practice of selling herbal weight-loss products and asks whether regulations should try to protect consumers from making bad choices or if buyers should be solely in control of their own decisions. Advertising can be a challenge to autonomy, especially if it misleads or manipulates by triggering unreflective psychological dynamics, and capitalism relies on consumers being informed and able to make voluntary choices. The challenges posed by internet commerce are also discussed. The morality of workplace restrictions on individuals is examined, as well as the challenges of intrusive psychological testing and reduced barriers between professional and private lives. Whistleblowing is also introduced as emblematic of the tension between individual values and loyalty to a company. The concluding case examines the Wells Fargo banking scandal where customers were unaware of accounts opened in their name and the firm coerced employees to act against their best moral judgment.

Social media and other online platforms have had a profound impact on corporate activity because they allow ordinary shareholders to directly communiate with each other and publicly demand changes in corporate governance. This newfound “shareholder democracy,” powered by platforms like Twitter, changed the rules of the games for corporate managers and investors alike. Not only can the shareholder “crowd” respond to current events and impact stock prices directly, such as in the case of GameStop, but these platforms also allow disgruntled investors to organize protests and demand accountability and transparency. This Chapter explores various events in the modern era in which shareholders have wielded social media to impact corporate activity, either intentionally or by accident. Although it is unclear whether this consumer engagement produces a profitable effect on company value in the long run, it is clear that we are in a new age of corporate dealings. In light of these new technologies, the SEC has the opportunity to unlock, legalize, and even promote new, financial technologies.