Individual investors continue to actively participate in the markets, increasingly diversifying their portfolios with new approaches to research and discovery.
In 2020, a wave of retail investors entered the stock market. During the next two years, approximately 30 million new brokerage accounts were opened in the U.S.¹ By 2021, retail investors comprised 25% of total equities trading volume, nearly double the percentage reported a decade prior.²
And they’ve stuck around. In February 2023, retail investors across platforms set a new all-time high for weekly inflows, with $1.5 billion dollars pouring into the market in a single week.³
Participation in the public markets remains high; and, more significantly, it is evolving. Public’s latest Retail Investing Report dives into what’s new and what’s next. Below is a summary of the findings.
Retail investors are diversifying across asset classes and strategies
Investors continue diversifying across asset classes, with megatrends and cultural moments sparking the discovery of new investment strategies and opportunities. Increased adoption of fixed-income strategies in 2023 balanced out growth plays that tracked trending technologies and companies.