Last Updated: June 27, 2026
1.1. The Competition is open to individuals of legal age in their jurisdiction and who comply with applicable securities laws. Participants may be located outside the United States where legally permitted.
1.2. Each participant registers a single account on the contest portal. Registration requires a valid email address, display name shown publicly on leaderboards, password, and acceptance of these Rules.
1.3. For monetary prize eligibility, participants must additionally provide a real name, a Twitter/X or LinkedIn URL, linked to an account at least six months old, and complete identity verification. These can be provided at the time of your picks or prize claim. Social account age is verified for participants placing in the Top 10 of any Contest. Participants that do not have a social account, a thorough identity verification will be required.
1.4. The three Contests, Planet MicroCap, SmallCap Discoveries, and LD Micro, are independent — a participant may enter any combination of one, two, or all three. Each participant may submit only one entry per Contest.
1.5. Duplicate accounts, aliases, or multiple submissions per Contest will result in disqualification across all Contests.
1.6. All entries must be submitted before each Contest's stated deadline. Entries are final and cannot be modified after submission.
1.7. The organizers reserve the right to disqualify any participant suspected of fraud, manipulation, or rule violations.
1.8. The organizers reserve the right to amend the Rules.
2.1. The Competition consists of three independent Contests, each tied to a 2026 microcap conference. Each Contest has its own 14-day submission window and its own tracking end date.
2.2. Contest 1 — Planet MicroCap Las Vegas, June 16–18, 2026
2.3. Contest 2 — SmallCap Discoveries Vancouver, September 28–29, 2026
2.4. Contest 3 — LD Micro Los Angeles, October 19–21, 2026
2.5. Each Contest is treated as standalone. New participants may join any Contest without having entered previous ones.
3.1. Each participant selects stocks per Contest from the companies presenting at that Contest's associated conference:
3.2. Selections per Contest:
3.3. Starter stocks are used for performance scoring. Bench stocks do not contribute to scoring and are used only for tiebreaking and potential bonus prizes.
4.1. Earlier submissions lock in earlier entry prices.
4.2. Entry price is determined individually for each participant based on the time of their submission, not on a single Contest-wide reference date. Each individual's tracking starts from their own commitment.
4.3. Specifically, entry price is determined as follows:
4.4. Once entry price is set, performance is tracked from that price through the Contest's tracking end date. All participants in a given Contest share the same tracking end date.
4.5. For each stock, peak return is the highest percentage price increase from the individual entry price to the intraday high of any subsequent trading day, up to the Contest's end date and time.
4.6. The official ranking is determined using Starter stock performance only. Bench stocks are excluded from rankings except for tiebreakers and potential bonus prizes.
5.1. Each Contest is scored independently. There is no combined cross-Contest score.
5.2. Contest Score = average of peak returns of the 5 Starter stocks submitted to that Contest.
5.3. Participants are ranked within each Contest by Contest Score, highest average peak performance. Each Contest has its own 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. A participant who places in one Contest is eligible to place in others, independently.
6.1. In the event of a tie between two or more Starter portfolios with identical Contest Scores within the same Contest, the following criteria are applied in order.
6.2. Best Bench Performance — the participant whose Bench stocks achieve the highest average peak return wins.
6.3. Best Individual Stock Performance, Starters or Bench — the participant with the single highest peak-returning stock wins.
6.4. Second-Best Individual Stock Performance, Starters or Bench — if still tied, the second-best stock is used.
6.5. Earliest Submission Timestamp — if still tied, the participant who submitted first wins.
7.1. Long positions only.
7.2. No short selling.
7.3. No derivatives or ETFs allowed.
7.4. No cryptocurrencies allowed.
7.5. No trading during the competition period, as performance is calculated passively.
7.6. No changes to stock selections once a Contest submission is made.
8.1. Total prize pool: $15,000 across the three Contests, $5,000 per Contest.
8.2. Per Contest, $5,000:
8.3. Additional rewards, by Contest Score, applied per Contest:
8.4. Bonus prizes, such as additional subscriptions to MSM Cliff Notes Substack or GeoInvesting, may also be awarded to select participants at the organizers' discretion.
8.5. All participants will be provided 1-month complimentary access to:
8.6. Prize payout schedule:
8.7. All monetary prize winners must complete identity verification before payout. This includes providing a real name, a valid Twitter/X or LinkedIn URL with account age verification ≥6 months, and any required tax documentation.
8.8. Winners are determined based on portfolio peak performance.
9.1. Participants must adhere to all Competition Rules and may not use insider information, non-public information, or engage in any form of market manipulation or unfair advantage.
9.2. Any attempt to cheat, manipulate results, bypass restrictions, or otherwise violate the spirit or letter of the Competition rules may result in immediate disqualification at the discretion of the organizers.
9.3. The organizers reserve the right to verify entries, investigate potential violations, and enforce all rules as necessary, including the removal of participants or adjustment of standings where appropriate.
9.4. By entering the Competition, participants agree to abide by these Rules, the Terms & Conditions, and the Stock-Picking Competition Disclaimer.
GeoInvesting and MS Microcaps research microcap stocks, track management teams, and analyze market opportunities. This contest gives independent investors, analysts, fund managers, and newsletter writers a structured way to showcase stock-picking skill in the microcap landscape.
This contest is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing on this page should be considered investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Participants are responsible for their own research and investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results. GeoInvesting and MS Microcaps are not registered investment advisors.