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Unearthing hidden gems: The small-cap advantage for retail investors

Small-cap stocks have often taken a backseat in the eyes of investors, who tend to view them as riskier investments when compared to their larger-cap counterparts. This perception has led some fundamentally-oriented retail investors to avoid small-caps altogether. However, for those willing to invest the time and effort required, exploring small-cap stocks can be rewarding, offering the potential for higher returns.

Stock-based compensation such as ESOS is widely used to reward, motivate and retain directors and employees for their contributions to a company's performance. Proponents believe stock options can effectively align the interests of managers, employees and shareholders.

At the same time, opponents argue that the mechanism of ESOS is flawed and highly contentious. They argue that executives can make a fortune from options when shares go up in value, but executives are not worse off when share prices fall as they can choose not to exercise the options.

While measures like fractional share trading, reduced board lot and lower stamp duty rate would increase the affordability and flexibility to trade and invest in Bursa Malaysia, however, brokerage fees are a cost that may hinder share trading for retail investors, especially when they buy and sell a small number of shares.