How ordinary investors present challenges and opportunities for the industry

There was a sudden rush of enthusiasm for the stockmarket. Investment platforms around the world reported sharp rises in the number of new accounts and the volume of trades. In the US, Fidelity added  3.7 million accounts in 2020. In the UK, a run through of the established brokers suggested 400,000-500,000 new investors made their first trade by the middle of the year, while eToro reported a stunning rise in users to some 20 million by mid-2021. The new investors turned out to be a bit younger than those the industry is used to: Hargreaves Lansdown noted last year (with a tone of ...