Retail investors are slowing their pace of buying US stocks: net purchases of $13 billion over the past month, the lowest level since 2020

BlockBeats message, July 11, according to VandaTrack data, over the past month retail investors net bought US stocks of $13 billion, the lowest level since 2020. Since the beginning of 2026, retail investors’ monthly net purchase amount has fallen by $18 billion, a decline of 58%. At the same time, the net buying amount for individual stocks fell by $8 billion, a decline of 71%, to $3.2 billion, the lowest level since the first quarter of 2020.

Despite this, the total amount of retail holdings has still reached a record high of $500 billion, double from mid-2024. The current level of selling by retail investors is almost as strong as the level of buying, thereby compressing net buying volume. Retail trading in the market is cooling down.