To start, I would like to thank the ANet staff for developing the TP in GW2. Never before have I seen such a well developed and enjoyable trading system in an MMORPG as what we have in GW2 today.
That being said, there are a few ways in which I think the TP can be further improved:
1. Additional Filters
At present, while there is a list of filters in the TP, these are far from sufficient. Mostly crucially, players do not have a way of sorting items based upon usability, resulting in players having no effective method to compare items that they might want to buy for themselves. As such, it would be very helpful if filters were introduced to allow players to only see items that they can use, or by armour type (Light, Medium, Heavy), etc.
2. Bonded Warehouses
Currently, when trading in GW2, two separate fees are imposed. The first is a 5% listing fee. This could be compared to the kinds of listing fees charged by websites such as Amazon for the listing of a product. The second is a 10% tax charged upon successful completion of a transaction, more akin to the VAT or other duties that we may experience in real life. While this system works for the average consumer, it is a rather significant obstacle to those who trade frequently on the TP, as a 10% tax takes a large bite out of their bottom lines.
One solution to this problem is to introduce some sort of virtual bonded warehouse in GW2. Under this system, items purchased by traders would not go directly into their inventories, but into a separate storage area. They would not be able to do anything to items stored there, except to sell them or withdraw them. Upon sale of an item from the bonded warehouse, the 10% sales tax will not be charged. However, if an item was withdrawn and subsequently sold, the 10% sales tax will apply. Traders would also not be able to place anything into the bonded warehouse by themselves, items can only enter via the TP.
By reducing the transaction fees incurred by traders upon completion of successful trades, traders would in turn be spurred into entering markets with lower margins. This would have the effect of lowering the average bid-offer spread of items on the TP, thus increasing liquidity on the TP. The average player’s experience would then also be enhanced, as his purchases & sales would process much more quickly.
If desired, ANet could also charge monthly fees (in Gems, perhaps), for usage of this feature. This would have the additional benefit of allowing ANet to generate more revenue.
3. Short Selling
While we’re on the issue of improving the trading experience, why not introduce new methods of trading as well! Currently, the only method of trading possible in GW2 is going long. While this is fun in itself, I believe that the experience could be made even more challenging and rewarding if short selling is introduced as well. Furthermore, short selling could help the GW2 economy, as it would make it even harder for individual traders or groups of traders to artificially raise the price of items.
In time to come, further methods of trading such as futures & options could also be introduced.
4. Hedge Funds
At present, many players, owing to either lack of knowledge or insufficient working capital, are unwilling or unable to play the TP effectively. This has resulted in a rather unequal situation, in which a small group of traders (colloquially known as the “TP Barons”) are able to take full advantage of the benefits of the TP.
This is a problem which I feel can be resolved through the introduction of hedge funds in GW2. Under such a system, players would be able to pool their funds together into a separate commercial entity, which would then in turn be managed by one amongst them. Trades made by this separate commercial entity would then be registered in a log, which can be accessed by all investors, giving the hedge funds greater transparency and accountability. Ideally, hedge fund shares could also be traded on the TP, giving individual investors in the hedge fund a chance to cash out when desired without potentially compromising the long-term strategies of the hedge fund.
Thank you for your time. All opinions and suggestions on how to further improve the TP or the ideas expressed above are warmly welcomed.