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Who participated in the GameStop frenzy? Evidence from brokerage accounts

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Listed:
  • Hasso, Tim
  • Müller, Daniel
  • Pelster, Matthias
  • Warkulat, Sonja

Abstract

In January 2021, the GameStop stock was the epicenter of the first case of predatory trading initiated by retail investors. We use brokerage accounts to study who participated in this GameStop frenzy and how they performed. We investigate the extent to which investors’ personal and trading characteristics differ from the general population of retail investors. GameStop traders had a history of investing in speculative instruments, including stocks with lottery-like features. They were also more likely to close their positions before the peak of the bubble. At the onset of the frenzy, numerous retail investors also shorted GameStop. Overall, our results indicate that the GameStop frenzy was not a pure digital protest against Wall Street but speculative trading by a group of retail investors, in line with their prior high-risk trading behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Hasso, Tim & Müller, Daniel & Pelster, Matthias & Warkulat, Sonja, 2022. "Who participated in the GameStop frenzy? Evidence from brokerage accounts," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:45:y:2022:i:c:s154461232100221x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2021.102140
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    Cited by:

    1. Aloosh, Arash & Ouzan, Samuel & Shahzad, Syed Jawad Hussain, 2022. "Bubbles across Meme Stocks and Cryptocurrencies," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    2. Elsayed, Ahmed H. & Hoque, Mohammad Enamul & Billah, Mabruk & Alam, Md. Kausar, 2024. "Connectedness across meme assets and sectoral markets: Determinants and portfolio management," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    3. Yousaf, Imran & Pham, Linh & Goodell, John W., 2023. "The connectedness between meme tokens, meme stocks, and other asset classes: Evidence from a quantile connectedness approach," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    4. Kormanyos, Emily & Hanspal, Tobin & Hackethal, Andreas, 2023. "Do gamblers invest in lottery stocks?," SAFE Working Paper Series 373, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE, revised 2023.
    5. Suchanek, Max, 2024. "Social interactions in short squeeze scenarios," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 898-919.
    6. Li, Shi, 2022. "Spillovers between Bitcoin and Meme stocks," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    7. Nobanee, Haitham & Ellili, Nejla Ould Daoud, 2023. "What do we know about meme stocks? A bibliometric and systematic review, current streams, developments, and directions for future research," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 589-602.
    8. Zi Yang, 2022. "GameStop or Game Just Started? Leveling the Playing Field for Social Media Meme Investors to Rebuild the Public’s Trust," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-13, December.
    9. Łukasz Baszczak, 2023. "Ekonomia narracji – początki nowego nurtu," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 1, pages 66-81.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Predatory trading; Retail investors; Trading behavior;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G40 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - General
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets

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