Stock Trading Demographics in 2025

Written by Naylyan Nazifova

Naylyan Nazifova

Naylyan Nazifova is a recognised expert in the online trading field. She has many publications and analysis covering forex trading, stock investing and personal finance. 

, | Updated: July 10, 2025

In 2025, the face of stock trading is no longer defined by Wall Street brokers in suits or exclusive financial hubs. The modern trader is just as likely to be a 23-year-old in Mumbai, a mother of two investing from her Toronto condo, or a college student, trading on an app on their phone. Stock trading has become a global phenomenon, thanks to advances in technology, diverse participants, and increased access to markets. Additionally, investing is no longer confined to institutions or high-net-worth individuals. Retail trading, once a marginal activity, now accounts for a significant share of the daily trading volume.

Financial education on social media has played a big role in the development of stock trading, not only broadening participation but also creating new demographic trends. This page offers a comprehensive overview of stock trading demographics across key global regions. Whether you are an investor, a financial professional, or simply curious about who shapes the stock market, this article will help you understand the makeup of modern stock traders by age, gender, region, experience level, education, and investment behavior.

Why Do Demographics Matter?

Understanding who trades stocks and how is more than just a matter of statistics. It offers insight into how economic power is shifting, how financial literacy is evolving, and how different trader types deal with risk. Here are some examples of how demographics shape the market:

• Countries with younger average populations may signal more aggressive risk appetite and faster adoption of digital platforms.
• A growing share of female investors can indicate a closing gender wealth gap and more financial inclusivity in the local market.
• The ratio of mobile and desktop trading reveals how technology is driving accessibility, especially in emerging markets.

These indicators help identify where demand for new products may be rising, where regulation may need to evolve, and where economic inclusion is improving or falling behind.

From the explosive growth of retail investing in India to the quiet but steady increase of female traders in the UK and Canada, the global stock trading landscape is in constant motion. New technology and generational shifts are driving a wave of participation unthinkable a decade ago. Let’s explore the demographic data in different locations.

Global Overview of Stock Trading Demographics

Stock trading has entered a new era shaped not just by high finance but by smartphones, social media, and a new generation of self-directed investors. Due to improving technology, easier access to markets, and better online education, millions of everyday people have started investing on their own. While institutional trading still dominates the overall volume in many markets, retail investors now play a growing role in shaping global market movements. Thanks to user-friendly platforms, commission-free apps, and greater awareness of financial literacy, the global population of retail stock traders has grown rapidly over the past decade.

1. Participation & Volume

   • The World Economic Forum (WEF) 2024 Global Retail Investor Outlook identifies a broadening of participation as more young people, individuals from emerging markets, and women began trading in 2024-2025.
   • In the U.S. alone, households now own nearly 38% of directly held U.S. equities, according to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), while retail investors contributed approximately $20 billion in net stock purchases over the past three months. Goldman Sachs forecasts an additional $425 billion in inflows by the end of 2025.

2. Age and Gender

   • Around 40% of day traders are aged 25 to 34 years old, highlighting the strong youth presence.
   • A global survey released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) indicates 50% of all retail investors are men.
   • The gender gap, however, is shrinking. In the UK, the female investor base at digital wealth platform Nutmeg rose from 24% in 2013 to 41% in 2025.

3. Education and Experience

   • According to Broadridge’s analysis of U.S. retail investors, over 51% of investors lack a college degree, marking a shift: non-college-educated participants have grown to a majority since 2022. However, college-educated investors hold higher median assets, about $73,000 versus $28,000 for high-school grads.
   • Around one-quarter of active day traders come from a finance or investment-related industry background, signaling a mix of professional and newcomer participation.

4. Technology & Behavior

   • Approximately 75% of retail trades globally are now executed via smartphone apps, reflecting a strong mobile-first shift in retail trading behavior.
   • The year 2024 saw a 47% increase in trading app downloads, with brands like Robinhood, eToro, and Trading 212 attracting millions of new mobile users.
   • According to the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Global Retail Investor Outlook, 41% of Gen Z began investing during university, while a combined 41% of Gen Z and millennials say they are open to AI-powered trading advisors, showing generational openness to tech-driven financial tools.

The U.S.

• 482,200 active professional traders (2025)
• Expected 7.4% growth in trader roles by 2032

As of 2024, stock trading in the U.S. has evolved into a widespread economic activity accessible to millions thanks to technology and advanced platforms. There are approximately 165 million stock traders across the country. The average trader is 43 years old, and the profession remains largely male-dominated, with over 84% of traders being men. Female participation, however, is slowly increasing. Education plays a significant role, with nearly three-quarters holding at least a bachelor’s degree and about 45% having a background in finance.

Technology is shaping how people trade: most retail investors use mobile platforms, with many exploring AI and automated tools. Younger traders tend to show a higher risk tolerance than their older counterparts. The majority report high flexibility and decent income satisfaction, though opinions on stress and job meaning are more mixed.

Total Trader Count (2025)

• An estimated 482,200 professional stock traders in the U.S.
• 35,500+ new jobs expected by 2032
• 4,500 stock traders to retire by 2032

Source: Gallup

Gender Breakdown (for professional stock traders)

• 84.5% male, 15.5% female stock traders (2021)
• The gender gap has narrowed slightly year-over-year.

Source: www.zippia.com

Source: www.zippia.com

Women make 90 cents for every dollar men earn.

• Male Income (2021): $109,148
• Female Income(2021): $98,091

Age Distribution (for professional stock traders)

• Average trader age: 43 years (2021)
• The largest segment is between 40 and 50 years old

Source: www.zippia.com

Stock Trader Age Breakdown

Experience & Education 2021 (of professional stock traders)

• As many as 74% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• Around 45% come from finance/investing backgrounds.
• Traders holding a master’s degree are the highest earners.

Source: www.zippia.com

Platform Usage & Devices (2024-25)

• Mobile apps captured 54% of the country’s online trading platform market in 2024.
• Desktop platforms saw an 8.1% surge in CAGR last year.
• Cloud solutions held a 62% share of the US online trading platform market.

Source: Mordor Intelligence

What Companies Do Professional U.S. Stock Traders Work for?

• Most professional stock traders in the country favor working for private rather than public companies.
• A minuscule 2% prefer to work for the U.S. government.

Professional U.S. Stock Traders’ Job Preferences

Regional Highlights & Personality Traits (for professional traders)

• Racial Demographics: 66.7% White, 12.4% Asian, 11.5% Hispanic, 5.5% Black (2024)
• Personality Trends: Above-average in competitiveness, extroversion, and resilience

Source: www.zippia.com

The UK

• As of 2025, 54% of UK adults have invested; 26% own stocks/shares (approximately 14 million)
• FTSE100 total return: 11.4% in 2024

The United Kingdom’s retail investing scene has seen remarkable growth and diversification over the past few years. As of 2025, nearly 54% of UK adults (approximately 14 million people) hold and actively trade stocks. This is an impressive rise compared to just 42% in 2023. The increase has been driven by a surge in digital ‘app-only’ brokers, which have lowered access barriers for young people and lower-income households.

Broader economic trends have also shaped participation. Historically low interest rates pushed investors toward equities and heightened public awareness around sustainable trading.

Age demographics show that investing is no longer dominated by older participants: more than two-thirds of Gen Z (aged 18 to 27) and 64% of millennials (aged 28 to 43) have bought shares, with even 46% of Baby Boomers (aged 60 to 78) taking part.

Total Trader Count

• 2025: ~29 million investors; 26% equity owners (~14 million)
• 2023: ~42% total investors (up by 12 percentage points in 2025)

UK Adult Investment Overview (2025)

UK Adult Investment Growth

Age Distribution (2025)

• Investment participation is strong across all age groups, with over 65% of Gen Z and Millennials now engaged in the market.
• Young adults (aged 18 to 34) tend to invest a larger share of their income, frequently favoring high-risk, high-reward investments.
• Baby Boomers and Generation X are the least likely groups to invest.

Source: www.finder.com

Gender Breakdown (2024-2025)

• 63% of men and 46% of women have invested in 2025.
• Around 41% of men aged 18 to 34 have invested in 2025, compared to 20% of female investors from the same age group.
• The gender gap remains, although it has slightly narrowed.

Source: www.unbiased.co.uk

Source: www.boringmoneybusiness.co.uk

Platform Usage & Devices (2025)

• Approximately 1.6 million adult Brits, representing 3% of the total adult population, were using a trading app in May 2024, an FCA survey shows.
• App usage was notably higher among British men (5%) compared to women (1%).

Device Usage for Stock Trading Apps

Source: FCA Financial Lives 2024 Survey

Assets UK Trading App Users Invest In

Source: www.investingreviews.co.uk

Trading Behavior & Risk

• Millennials (7.5%) and Gen Z (7%) lead in ESG investing.
• In 2025, the gender investment gap in the UK widened to £678 billion, with men holding significantly more assets than women. Male investing increased particularly among the 18–34 and 25–44 age groups.

Source: www.finder.com/uk

Regional Highlights / Notables

• ETF use in Europe has grown by 19% since 2022, led by investors aged 18 to 34 (80% using digital platforms).
• In 2024, 88 firms were delisted from the LSE, the highest delisting rates since 2009.
• British women held £450 billion in investments compared to £1.01 trillion for male investors as of January 2024

Japan

• The number of NISA accounts exceeded 19 million in late 2023, up 46% since 2019.
• The trading value of the Japanese ETF market reached ¥75.856 trillion in the year ending March 2025, recording daily averages of around ¥310.9 billion.
• Retail investors purchased ¥819.3 billion in domestic equities and futures contracts in a single week between January 6 and January 10, 2025, for a nine-month high.

In 2025, Japan’s stock market continues to show strong activity, driven by both retail and institutional investors. Retail investors were particularly active, with purchases of ¥819.3 billion in the first trading week of the year: the highest weekly total since April 2024. Daily trading volumes on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime Market remain high, averaging ¥5.4 trillion in March 2025.

Foreign investment also remains significant, as Japanese investors bought a record ¥3.27 trillion in overseas stocks in April 2025, representing the highest monthly level seen in two decades. These recent trends highlight the expanding role of retail investors in Japan’s equity markets and their increasing appetite for a broad range of financial instruments.

Total Trader Count

• In March 2023, the number of non‑unique individual shareholder accounts in Japan reached 69.8 million, up by 5.2 million (8%) from the previous year.
• Individual and non-corporate accounts held ¥131.2 trillion in equity market value, representing 17.6% of all shares.
• Individual investors made up 97.8% of all registered shareholder accounts.

Total Trader Count in Japan (2020–2025)

Source: Official data released by Nippon

Gender Breakdown (December 2024)

• Male investors – 79%
• Female investors – 19.2%
• For context, a 2018 Fidelity survey of 12,010 employed Japanese nationals reported that 40.1% of men and 23.5% of women invest.

Japan Retail Investor Gender Breakdown (Monex 2024)

**This breakdown shows the gender distribution of Monex’s respondents in a survey conducted between December 12 and December 19, 2024.

Source: Monex Global Retail Investor Survey

Age Distribution & Experience (2024)

• Retail trading in Japan is heavily skewed toward older investors, with over half (50.5%) of active retail investors aged 60 and above.
• Younger cohorts (under 40), while less represented in terms of trading volumes, are driving growth in mobile and ESG-oriented investing.

Source: www.nomuraholdings.com

Average Financial Assets Held by Age Group (in ¥ millions)

Source: Japanese Securities Dealers Association (JSDA) Fact Book 2024

Experience & Education (2023)

• Financial education in school was rare; only 7.1% reported receiving any formal financial instruction during their school years.
• 13.7% cited video-sharing platforms (e.g., YouTube) as their primary financial learning source; only 5.0% had attended traditional school/university lectures.

Educational Data (2023)

Source: Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI)

Source: www.sciencedirect.com

Online Securities Trading in Japan (2024)

• The number of online accounts held at Japanese securities brokers rose from 39.49 million at the end of November 2023 to 43.76 million at the end of November 2024, marking a 10.9% year-over-year increase.
• However, the number of newly opened online securities trading accounts declined by 37.1% year-over-year, from 526,616 to 331,265 in December 2024.

Source: Japanese Securities Dealers Association (JSDA)

Newly Registered Online Trading Accounts

Source: Japanese Securities Dealers Association (JSDA)

Trading Behavior & Risk (Japan, 2023)

• Approximately 50% of Japanese retail investors believed that current market conditions required some level of risk aversion, indicating a moderate level of caution.
• 75% of Japanese retail investors did not take risk-averse actions such as shifting investments to safer assets in 2023, suggesting a preference for maintaining their investment strategies despite market volatility.

Japan Stock Holdings by Investor Type (FY2023)

Source: Japanese Securities Dealers Association (JSDA) Fact Book 2024

Percentage of investors answering “Yes” to the question “Do you think the current market conditions require some degree of avoidance of risky assets?” in 2024

What specific risk avoidance measures have you implemented? (2024)

Source: Monex Global Retail Investor SurveyRegional Highlights / Notables

• In February 2024, the Nikkei 225 closed at 39,098.68, eclipsing its previous record from December 1989 (38,915.87) and marking the first such milestone in 35 years.
• As of June 2024, there were 24.28 million NISA accounts in Japan (an increase of 3.03 million, or 14% in 6 months), with total investments reaching ¥45.4 trillion (+29%).

Nikkei 225 Performance Highlights (2024)

Source: www.english.kyodonews.net

Canada

Over 8 million Canadians now hold self-directed investment accounts, up over 40% since 2019. Among individuals over 65, 61% reported owning Segmentation 01 investments, while only 50% of those under 35 did.

Canada’s retail investing ecosystem is rapidly shifting toward self-directed, digital participation, mirroring global trends in finance. Canadian investors, especially younger ones, are increasingly managing their investments on their own. Notably, 53% of Canadian investors use social media for investment advice and information, focusing on platforms such as YouTube and TikTok, rising to 82% among 18- to 24-year-old investors. Additionally, 45% of investors say they have a self-directed account. However, in 2024, nearly 22% reported exposure to potential investment fraud, often linked to high-risk online schemes.

Canada is seeing a diversification of the products that retail investors engage with. ETFs have seen explosive growth, now managing over 500 billion Canadian dollars in assets, up 100% since 2020.

Total Market Participation in Canada (2024)

• In 2024, about 54% of Canadians identified as investors, meaning they hold some form of investment, such as mutual funds, term deposits, GICs, or publicly traded stocks. This translates roughly to over half of the adult population (around 22 million) in Canada actively holding investments.
• 48% of Canadians reported investing money annually in early 2024, while 56% expressed confidence in managing their own investments (rising to 75% among actual investors).

Source: www.datareportal.com, Ipsos, CIRO, Edward Jones, National Bank of Canada

Gender Breakdown (2024)

• Women investors generally favor lower-risk products like mutual funds and ETFs, while men more often invest in individual stocks and higher-risk assets.
• 45% of men and 30% of women report having a self-directed investment account, showing a notable gender gap in DIY investing.
• Most new self-directed investors who have opened accounts within the past three years are women (44%) compared to new male investors (39%).

Source: www.ciro.ca

Age Breakdown (2024)

• Investors under 35 are the most active in managing their own portfolios, with 53% holding self-directed investment accounts.
• Millennials and Gen Z investors show higher interest in trading individual stocks and cryptocurrencies compared to older generations.

(2024)

Source: www.ciro.ca

Most Popular Investment Products by Age Group (2024)

Source: www.securities-administrators.ca

Education and Experience

• In 2021, 69% of all respondents in a survey conducted by the Responsible Investment Association (RIA), said they had little to no knowledge of responsible investing, down from 75% the year prior.
• Most investors are employed, university-educated, started investing before age 35, and invest primarily through registered accounts.

Education Levels of Canadian Investors (2018)

Source: www.osc.ca

Investor Experience by Frequency of Trading or Account Age (2024)

Source: www.ciro.ca

(2018)

Source: www.investmentexecutive.com

Average experience of Canadian stock investors (2024)

Source: www.ciro.ca

Platform Usage & Devices

• As many as 40% of Canadians prefer to use an online stock trading platform.
• Mobile leads in device usage, with nearly 50% of internet traffic in Canada coming from mobile devices as of May 2025.
• The Canadian algorithmic trading market generated revenue of US$1,261.4 million in 2024 and is expected to reach US$2,697.4 million by 2030.

Source: www.finder.com

Source: www.gs.statcounter.com

Trading Behavior & Risk

• In 2024, 53% of Canadian investors reported using social media platforms for investment advice, up from 35% in both 2012 and 2020.
• Canadian investors exhibit diverse trading behaviors, with about 30% trading actively, a majority adopting moderate risk profiles, and younger investors more likely to embrace high-risk assets.
• While 9% of investors say they are willing to take significant risk, nearly 1 in 4 (24%) of these risk-tolerant investors would still sell during a major market downturn, according to the 2024 CIRO Investor Survey.

Source: www.securities-administrators.ca

Risk Tolerance Level & Percentage of Investors (2024)

Source: www.ciro.ca

Regional Highlights / Notables

• Ontario and Quebec remain the largest hubs of investment activity, collectively accounting for over half (61%) of all self-directed accounts. These provinces benefit from higher urbanization, stronger financial literacy initiatives, and greater access to digital investing platforms.
• Across all regions, urban centers consistently report higher rates of self-directed account ownership and use of social media for investment advice compared to rural areas, where reliance on financial advisors remains comparatively higher.
• ETF assets under management, having doubled since 2020 to over CA$500 billion, are expected to sustain strong inflows as investors seek cost-effective and flexible portfolio options.

Australia

• ESG and crypto investing are growing in interest, as women investors outperformed men in 2024.
• Millennials (45%) and Gen Z (36%) are more likely to dip their toes into investing than older age groups.

Australia continues to demonstrate a mature, tech-savvy, and increasingly diversified retail investment landscape. As of 2025, approximately 34% of Australian adults, around 7.1 million people, hold shares in public companies. Research shows that 41% of Australian men invest, compared to just 27% of women.

Retail participation keeps expanding. Almost 1.33 million Australians made at least one equity trade in the year up to November 2024, up from 1.28 million in mid-2024. The adoption of technology is reshaping the market. As many as 22% of Australians use online trading apps, while 59% do not use digital platforms at all.

Investor confidence remains high as the people trading online in November 2024 expect a 6.3% annual return, up from 5.3% earlier in the year.

Total Trader Count

• Approximately 7.1 million Australian adults (around 34% of the population) own shares as of early 2025, indicating sustained growth in retail investor participation.
• Around 1.33 million Australians executed at least one online cash-equity trade between May and November 2024, up from 1.28 million in May, an increase of approximately 50,000 new traders in just six months, signaling growing retail engagement.
• As of May 2025, Australia had 1,947 listed equity issuers, with $3.1 trillion in market capitalization, keeping the ASX among the world’s largest exchanges.

Number of active investors in thousands

Source: www./investmenttrends.com

Gender Breakdown:

• Around 41% of Australian men and 27% of Australian women held investments beyond their home or superannuation savings in 2023-2024. These figures include shares, ETFs, and other investment vehicles.
• The ASX reported a significant increase in the number of female investors, estimating that 4.3 million women held investments in 2023, which was up by about 600,000 since 2020.
• Female investors achieved returns 1.7 percentage points higher than men in 2024, based on an analysis of 19,400 brokerage accounts.

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Source: ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Age Breakdown

• Baby Boomers lead generational shareholdings, with an average of $37,826 invested in shares as of 2025.
• According to the ASX Investor Study 2023, the average age of current on‑exchange investors is 47 years.

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

How much does the average Australian investor have in growth assets? (2024)

Source: InfoChoice’s State of Aussies’ Savings Survey Report

Education and Experience

• The portfolios of Australian investors with over 10 years of experience are nearly twice as large as those of people who have invested for less than a decade.
• Investors with higher education levels tend to hold more diversified portfolios and show greater engagement with digital trading platforms.

Source: www.asx.com.au

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Platform Usage and Devices

• Around 70% of Australian investors place trades through online brokers or digital trading platforms, continuing a dominant trend observed since 2020. As few as 15% depend on their financial advisers to execute trades, which is a slightly higher proportion than the 12% who use a full-service broker.
• Among digital investors, mobile trading is increasingly popular, especially among younger and male users. Mobile apps now account for nearly half of all retail trades on digital platforms. Notably, 24% of men and 19% of women report using mobile trading apps regularly.

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Trading Behavior & Risk

• In 2023, 67% of Australian investors preferred stable or guaranteed returns, up from 54% in 2020. Meanwhile, only 33% were willing to accept moderate or high variability for the potential of greater returns, down from 46% in 2020.
• In the event of a 20% market drop, 40% of investors in 2023 said they’d be concerned but would wait before acting. As many as 30% accepted volatility as part of investing, 10% said they’d invest more to take advantage of cheaper prices, and younger investors were most likely to sell or move to safer assets.

Source: ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Source: www.asx.com.au – ASX Australian Investor Study 2023

Regional Highlights / Notables

• Online investors now allocate a combined 20% of their portfolio to ETFs and international equities, up from 17% just six months prior. Specifically, 37% hold ETFs and 34% hold international shares, reflecting trends toward diversification and globalization.
• ASX notes that 2023 saw the highest number of on‑exchange investors since 2010, with strong participation from younger age groups (Gen Z and millennials) and women, suggesting a broadening investor base across geographic and demographic segments.

General Comparison of Statistics

Total Investor Count (2024-2025)

Gender Breakdown of Investors

Written by N. Nazifova