Brokers’ clients grow by almost a third over the quarter
In 2021 Q1, the stock market retained its attractiveness for investors: the number of brokers’ clients grew by 29% to 12.7 million.
The value of securities held in individuals’ accounts with depositories reached 6 trillion rubles, including foreign securities worth 2.4 trillion rubles. Retail investors were mainly interested in riskier assets.
After the regulator recommended not to sell complex products to inexperienced investors, the volume of these instruments stopped growing. The volume of individuals’ investment in structural and investment-grade bonds remained unchanged, as these instruments were regarded as a more profitable alternative compared to deposits. In addition, there was an outflow of clients from trust management strategies which were offered to retail clients in combination with deposits as 'deposits with an increased interest rate’.
Read more about trends in investors’ behaviour in Q1 in the Review of Key Indicators of Professional Securities Market Participants.