Shareownership in Finland 2015

This paper studies patterns in ownership of Finnish stocks and bonds in 2015, and changes in shareownership patterns between 1995 and 2015. Our key findings are as follows. (1) In 2015, 12.8% (0.4%) of Finns own stocks (bonds) directly. (2) The median stock portfolio is worth 4,200 euros while the median bond portfolio is worth 15,000 euros. (3) Men account for 58% of shareholders, 70% of individuals’ combined investment wealth, and 73% of share millionaires. (4) Shareholders are on average 15 years older than the population. Wealthy
investors are even older. (5) The Swedish-speaking minority accounts for 5.3% of the population but owns 17.5% of individuals’ directly owned stock wealth. (6) The wealthiest 0.01% (1%) of individual investors owns 12% (46%) of the directly owned share wealth of individuals. (7) Individuals’ direct shareownership has become less concentrated since 2003.