For months, he had been hunting "The Ghost"—a rumored lithium mining startup that didn't trade on the big, polished stages of the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq. To find it, Arthur had to go off-road.

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His screen was a sea of sub-penny stocks and ticker symbols that looked like alphabet soup. Unlike the big exchanges, there was no central floor here. It was a digital wilderness of where trades happened directly between parties.

"Careful, Artie," Sal whispered, leaning over the counter with a tray of crullers. "Those 'penny stocks' are more volatile than my ex-wife."

He took a sip of lukewarm coffee and logged into his . Most people thought you needed a secret password or a smoky backroom to buy OTC stocks, but Arthur knew better. He used a major, full-service broker that specialized in the "Pink Sheets."

Arthur nodded. He knew the risks. There was less and fewer filing requirements out here. It was the Wild West of finance. He checked his Level 2 quotes one last time, watching the market makers shuffle orders. He wasn't looking for a safe bet; he was looking for the next frontier.