Publication
Title
An exploratory study on the impact of the COVID-19 confinement on the financial behavior of individual investors
Author
Abstract
This article explores the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown in Belgium on the financial behavior of individual investors. Specifically, the article is the first to examine whether exceptional market circumstances have induced individual investors to increase their equity positions. Using a proprietary database of almost 6.5 million individual investor transactions, this article shows that most individuals increased their equity positions during the pandemic, suggesting a contrarian strategy. Especially investors between 18 and 35 years old and those being less active are found to increase their equity positions compared to other age and activity level categories. Male investors seem to dominate equity markets in Belgium, even during the COVID-19 confinement period, and they increased their equity positions more in comparison to women. The patterns documented in this article are robust for the shares being constituents of the main Belgian equity index (i.e., Bel 20), for all listed shares on Euronext Brussels, and for small caps.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Economics, Management, and Financial Markets
Publication
2021
ISSN
1842-3191
DOI
10.22381/EMFM16320211
Volume/pages
16 :3 (2021) , p. 9-40
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
UAntwerpen
Publication type
Subject
External links
Record
Identifier
Creation 02.10.2023
Last edited 05.10.2023
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