No systemic risks identified in retail investment market
The number of households investing in the Russian financial market has grown substantially over recent years. Nevertheless, this has not led to an accumulation of systemic risks, as concluded by the Bank of Russia following its analysis of the retail investment market.
Despite the fact that non-qualified retail investors are in a majority, the situation in the market and its resilience are primarily influenced by qualified investors accounting for the largest proportion of trading. In 2025, they acted in a countercyclical manner, reducing investments amid market growth and, on the contrary, increasing them during market downturns, which helped curb price volatility. A key factor in boosting liquidity in the market and maintaining its resilience is a rise in the number of investors with small and medium-sized portfolios.
Most people prefer blue chips and investment grade bonds, while consistently adding new instruments to their portfolios to diversify them. Nevertheless, retail investors’ demand is primarily focused on securities of financial and oil and gas companies, as well as government bonds, which indicates low sectoral diversification of their portfolios. It is essential to increase it in order to mitigate potential negative effects on investment returns, which may be caused by changes in market cycles.
More details are available in the report Retail Investment Market.