Familiarity Bias in Asset Allocation of Brazilian Investors

Main Article Content

Bruno Ferman
Maurício Silveira Lersch
Claudia Emiko Yoshinaga

Abstract

This article analyzes the portfolio allocation of investors in their employer's shares in order to verify whether it exists a version of home bias. Our sample comprises investors of a Brazilian broker. The proportion of allocation on the shares of their employer is statistically higher and economically significant when compared to a control sample of non-employees. To assure that our results are robust to the fact that investors may have been granted employers’ shares as a bonus compensation, we identified firms that explicitly do not use this compensation strategy. This finding shows the potential increase in risk exposure in the investment portfolios despite the rational concept of diversification.

Article Details

Section
Long Paper
Author Biographies

Bruno Ferman, Fundação Getulio Vargas

Professor da Escola de Economia de São Paulo da Fundação Getulio Vargas

Maurício Silveira Lersch, Faculdade Dom Alberto

Professor da Faculdade Dom Alberto e Mestre em Economia pela FGV/EESP

Claudia Emiko Yoshinaga, Centro Universitário FECAP e Fundação Getulio Vargas

Professora Pesquisadora do Mestrado Profissional em Administração da FECAP e Professora da FGV EAESP