companies earn money so wealth is created. That comes in the form of dividends and higher stock prices. The stock market is just an attempt at figuring out the present value of that wealth creation. And a lot of the activity around that is zero sum.
Also depends on the market. The stock market does create value as companies hopefully gets more valuable as time go (earnings). However, markets like the foreign exchange market is a zero-sum game. Each cent one participant gain must come from someone else's loss.
For example gov/fed symbiosis boosted some stock, taxpayer still loses value IMO. All real value has to be still created with actual work , robots or human no matter. Looks like zero sum to me. No matter how clever the scheme or how the channeling of value is directed.
Zero sum game, meaning someone has to lose for another to win, only applies to derivatives such as options & futures. With stocks this does not apply, everyone could be profitable.
Hmm, what about the XIV? When that collapsed to zero and was closed out, didn't Credit Suisse tell all the bulls they were TSOL?
Can't ask. He might think medallion fund is holy grail, but I doubt he will say it or what it feeds on.