Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Online brokerage accounts have proliferated over the past few years, according to figures from the The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE).
In a statement, PSE President and CEO Hans Sicat said that such accounts now comprise more than a quarter (27 percent) of total stock market accounts, from a mere 6 percent share in 2009.
Since 2009, the PSE said that online accounts have grown at a compounded annual growth rate of 43.9 percent.
“The growth in online accounts continues to be impressive and validates our strategy of expanding the retail investor base through this platform,” Sicat added.
Similarly, the PSE’s 2014 Stock Market Investor profile report revealed that online accounts surged by 35.1 percent to 174,592 in 2014, from the previous year’s 129,255. Retail accounts accounted for virtually all (99.6 percent or 173,895) of 2014’s online total.
Total investor accounts, which include traditional and annual accounts, also rose by 9.4 percent to 640,665. Nearly all (98.5 percent) of the accounts were held by local investors.
The PSE also logged an increase in activity — 33.6 percent of accounts traded at least once in 2014, compared to the previous year’s 23.9 percent.
Investors get younger
According to the PSE investors aged 18-30 years old and 31-44 years old cornered 13.1 percent and 37.1 percent of 2014’s investor accounts, respectively.
The two age groups combined accounts for more than a half (50.1 percent) of the total share — up from 46.4 percent in 2014. Likewise, the 18-44 age group accounted for a 73.9 percent share of all online accounts.
When grouped according to income, this earning P500,000 or less a year represented 44 percent, from 2013’s 37.3 percent. The same income bracket accounted for 60 percent of online accounts.
Beyond Metro Manila
The PSE report also observed an increased participation of stock market investors outside the National Capital Region (NCR). Although more than half (68.5 percent) of total retail accounts were based in NCR, the figure has dropped 2013’s 77.7 percent.
Investors in the rest of Luzon took an 18.7 percent share of total accounts, up from 13.2 percent in 2013. Retail investors from the Visayas and Mindanao comprised 4.4 percent and 2.3 percent of total accounts, respectively.
For online accounts, those from NCR accounted for 60.3 percent of the share, compared to those based in the rest of Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao at 22.4 percent, 7.0 percent, and 4.5 percent, respectively.
“Technology levels the playing field in providing access to our stock market as shown by the higher share of online investors from Visayas and Mindanao. We are delighted that more brokers are now offering online trading services,” Sicat said.
Chinese nationals make up for slightly less than a third (30.2 percent) of the country’s foreign retail investors, followed by Americans (19.9 percent), Europeans (7.7 percent), Japanese (4.4 percent), South Koreans (4.2 percent), and Singaporeans (4.1 percent).
