Do you know how many Filipinos are currently investing in stocks?
Ten million people?
Lower.
Five million?
Lower.
One million?
Still, lower.
How many Filipinos are invested in stocks?
The correct answer is less than 1 million people — 640,665 to be exact.
This is from the Stock Market Investor Profile report of the PSE, data of which came from a survey of 18 online brokerage firms in the country.
The good news is that from 2013 to 2014, the number of Filipinos trading and investing in stocks have grown, rising by 9.4% from 585,562 in 2013 to 640,665 in 2014.
The bad news, though, is that this number still represents a very small percentage of the total Philippine population. Stock investing, it appears, remains to be an activity only for the elite few; not even reaching 1% yet of the country’s population.
Latest news about Filipino stock market investors:
- Profile of Filipino stock market investors in 2018
- INFOGRAPHIC: Profile of the Philippine Stock Market Investor
Comparison: Online vs. Broker-assisted accounts
More Filipinos are resorting to online platforms for their trades, as shown by the 35.1% growth of online stock trading accounts.
In 2014, there were 174,592 online trading accounts (versus 129,255 in 2013). The rise in number is admirable, but this 35.1% increase from 2013 to 2014 is actually the slowest in the past four years.
Still, online trading accounts have become more popular at the expense of traditional or broker-assisted accounts. Although still the majority, traditional accounts are declining in number, with traditional accounts now accounting for only 72.7% of total stock trading accounts, down from 77.9% in 2013.
Online accounts, meanwhile, represent 27.3% of total accounts, up from 22.1% in 2013.
The year 2014 also saw more trading activity in the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), with 33.6% active accounts, or one in 3 accounts, making at least one trade in 2014.
Previously, only 23.9% of total accounts were active (that is, less than 1 in 4 accounts made at least one trade during the year).
For more figures about stock trading in the Philippines, refer to the table below.
Table: Number of stock traders and investors in the Philippines
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total stock trading accounts in the Philippines | 525,850 | 585,562 | 640,665 | |||
| Annual growth rate of stock trading accounts | 11.4% | 9.4% | ||||
| Total online stock trading accounts | 28,261 | 35,559 | 52,750 | 78,216 | 129,255 | 174,592 |
| Annual growth rate of online trading accounts | 25.8% | 48.4% | 48.3% | 65.3% | 35.1% | |
| % Online trading accounts | 14.9% | 22.1% | 27.3% | |||
| % Broker-assisted accounts | 85.1% | 77.9% | 72.7% | |||
| % Active accounts (total accounts that made at least one trade) | 23.9% | 33.6% |
Happy smart investing!
Source: Philippine Stock Exchange
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