In 2023, retail investors made a comeback.
The stock market was flooded during the COVID-19 pandemic by a wave of novice investors, attracted by stimulus checks, extra free time and the new possibilities granted by mobile trading platforms.
Approximately 30 million new brokerage accounts were opened between 2020 and 2021 in the U.S. alone. While some of these investors left the market once lockdowns were over, a large share of them stayed and recent data shows they've invested in record levels during 2023.
Although millennial-preferred trading platforms such as Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) lost a big share of users between 2021 and 2022, many young investors migrated to legacy brokers like Fidelity, Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) and its subsidiary TD Ameritrade, with new knowledge and experience about the market's ups and downs.
By mid-2021, retail investors accounted for ...