CNBC’s Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge: Gaming the System

CNBC Uh oh, looks like someone’s gaming the system. Nancy Beaumont from California is all over the Leaderboard this morning.

Unless she’s discovered the key to cloning or has sisters all over the state (with, um, the same name), Nancy has created multiple accounts with a bunch of different strategies. 800 accounts, apparently. With 800 different stocks (one stock to an account).

Just who is this Nancy Beaumont? I don’t know, but if you make some anagrams of her name, you get:

  • Mean Bunny Coat
  • Anyone but Cam N.
  • Bouncy Tame Ann
  • Bum-acne Antony

Hmmm.

Author: Mike Lee

An idealistic realist, humanistic technologist & constant student.

4 thoughts on “CNBC’s Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge: Gaming the System”

  1. WIKIPEDIA ENTRY REGARDING THE “NANCY BEAUMONT” SCAM.

    Are the General Counsels at OptionsXpress and GE/CNBC on vacation or something?

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNBC#Contest_.22Multiple_Accounts.22_Controversy

    Contest “Multiple Accounts” Controversy

    The Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge, which is being sponsored by OptionsXpress,[16] has become embroiled in controversy after just its first week when it was revealed that one participant, Nancy Beaumont from California, registered 800 separate portfolios in the contest, exponentially increasing her probability of winning the $1,000,000 prize, and leading to her occupying no fewer than nine places in the Top 25 Leader Board. [17][18][19][20]

    The express terms of the Rules, however, provide in material part:

    Description of the Contest: The contest is a stock trading game that provides Participants with a fictional trading account, One Million (1,000,000) fictional dollars (“CNBC Bucks”) and the fictional ability to trade individual stocks on the NYSE, NASDAQ and/or AMEX exchanges.

    [21]

    The Rules further state:

    Trading: Each participant begins the Contest with One Million (1,000,000) CNBC Bucks to create a fictional portfolio of the NYSE, NASDAQ and/or AMEX-traded stocks. … Each participant can make a maximum of fifty (50) trades per Day, based on the time the trade is entered by the Participant.

    [22]

    As a result of Nancy Beaumont’s registration of 800 accounts, therefore, she has $800,000,000 CNBC Bucks available to her in the contest, spread over 800 separate accounts, and the ability to make a total of 40,000 trades per day. Other participants who registered one account per the express terms of the Rules, by comparison, have $1,000,000 CNBC Bucks available to them and can only make 50 trades per day. As a result, the probability of Nancy Beaumont winning the contest is dramatically skewed in her favor.

    The sponsor of the contest, OptionXpress has yet to make a statement regarding the controversy.

  2. Thanks for the info, Dave! I hope CNBC and/or OptionXpress closes this person’s account down soon – though I’m sure we’ll see many more scams before this contest is over.

  4. I read NANCY BEAUMONT works at touro university in CA.

    I believe it’s an online school.

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