Insider trading is the trading of a public company's stock or other securities (such as bonds or stock options) by individuals with access to nonpublic information about the company. In various countries, some kinds of trading based on insider information is illegal. This is because it is seen as unfair to other investors who do not have access to the information, as the investor with insider information could potentially make far larger profits that a typical investor could not make. Illegal insider trading raises the cost of capital for securities issuers, thus decreasing overall economic growth. However, some economists have argued that insider trading should be allowed and could, in fact, benefit markets.