2.4 million investors pass tests before transactions with complex financial instruments
During the 18 months since the launch, the tests were taken by 7.5 million people, with the majority of them (6.13 million) — soon after the implementation of this procedure. Over time, the number of those wishing to take the tests was declining (1.36 million people in October 2022—March 2023).
These are the results of the monitoring commissioned by the Bank of Russia. It is based on the survey of major brokers and was carried out by the National Association of Securities Market Participants and the National Finance Association.
Over the first year after the start (from October 2021 through September 2022), 31.3% of the participants (1.92 million people) passed the tests. During the next six months, this figure was 37.4% (0.51 million people). The share of the investors who passed the tests at the first attempt remains sufficiently high — 55%, whereas the percentages of people who needed three or more attempts declined from 30% during the first year of the tests to 25% in the next six months. This might suggest that investors’ awareness is growing as they choose not to use the brute force method.
From October 2022 through March 2023, Russian shares that are not on quotation lists and leveraged transactions remained among the most demanded instruments, in relation to which investors were taking the tests. Another popular instrument was Russian unrated bonds. Investors’ demand for structured income bonds was also increasing steadily. The number of the tests related to foreign shares notably declined, as trading in these securities was limited.
The tests are mostly taken in relation to the instruments that are also the most difficult to understand for investors, with the proportion of wrong answers remaining high. A considerable share of those who failed the tests and decided not to make another try ultimately changed their mind and refused to conduct transactions with complex instruments.