The Massachusetts securities regulator is probing the trading activities of GameStop, $GME investor Keith Gill aka DeepFuckingValue aka Roaring Kitty

The Massachusetts securities regulator is investigating the trading activities of Keith Gill, known as "Roaring Kitty," a prominent figure during the 2021 meme stock surge involving GameStop.

Massachusetts Secretary of State Bill Galvin, the chief securities regulator for the state, has initiated this probe into Gill's activities. A spokesperson for Galvin confirmed the investigation but declined to provide additional details.

This inquiry was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

On Monday, GameStop shares saw a significant increase after "Roaring Kitty" reappeared on Reddit, sharing a post that revealed a $116 million investment in the struggling video game retailer. By 10:45 a.m. ET (1445 GMT), the shares had declined by about 5%.

This Reddit post, the first from Gill's account in three years, suggested that he might be holding a substantial paper profit of tens of millions of dollars from his GameStop options position. Reuters could not independently confirm the authenticity of the Reddit post or the disclosed positions.

Attempts to reach Gill for comment were unsuccessful. It's important to note that regulatory inquiries and investigations do not necessarily imply wrongdoing and often do not lead to enforcement actions.

Previously, Galvin had investigated Gill's activities in 2021. That matter was concluded with a settlement involving Gill's former employer, MassMutual, which was penalized for inadequate supervision of his activities, according to a spokesperson for Galvin last month.

In 2021, Gill's bullish GameStop trades, shared through screenshots on Reddit, sparked a surge in demand for "meme stocks" – companies often with weak fundamentals that gained popularity through social media hype among retail traders.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also investigated the 2021 meme stock phenomenon, ultimately concluding that market systems functioned properly and finding no evidence to support claims that short sellers were responsible for the frenzy.

The Wall Street Journal further reported that the SEC is examining options trading in GameStop. However, an SEC spokesperson declined to confirm or comment on this report.