Schwab just delivered record trading volumes, yet the stock is tanking — a textbook case of margin compression hell. When sky-high activity can't translate to profits, you know fee wars have turned retail trading into a commodity business. The data shows retail investors are "actively managing money more than ever," but if industry giant $SCHW struggles to monetize this engagement, smaller players like $IBKR are toast when the trading boom inevitably fades.

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