Retail investors are backing away from stocks. Crypto is getting a different reception. Individual investors put just $1 billion into single stocks over the past 20 trading days, The Kobeissi
Retail investors are backing away from stocks. Crypto is getting a different reception.
Individual investors put just $1 billion into single stocks over the past 20 trading days, The Kobeissi Letter said in an X post on Sept. 26. That's close to the smallest 20-day total in at least two years, and roughly 95% below the about $20 billion they bought over a similar stretch in April 2025.
"Retail investors are trading less," Kobeissi wrote.
The gauge has been sliding for months. In early August, it dipped below zero, meaning individual investors were net sellers of single stocks for the first time since at least October 2024.
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Crypto funds have moved the other way. As per SoSoValue, the U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs pulled in about $2.39 billion in the week ended Sept. 25, their strongest week since October 2025. The funds took in money on all five trading days.
Bitcoin was trading at $83,217.28 at the time of writing.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, Source: SoSoValue
Spot XRP ETFs added $75.59 million over the same week, with inflows on four of the five trading days, led by $22.65 million on Sept. 25.
XRP was trading at $1.49 at the time of writing.
U.S. spot XRP ETFs, Source: SoSoValueThose flows include large investors as well as individuals, so they don't show retail demand on their own.
Borrowing costs have jumped. The Federal Reserve lifted its benchmark rate to a range of 3.75% to 4% on Sept. 16, its first increase since 2023, and signaled more could come. A week later, the 5-year Treasury yield topped 5% for the first time since 2007.
Individual investors were net sellers of U.S. stocks for an eighth straight week through Sept. 18, according to Bank of America data cited by Kobeissi. They have pulled an average of $1.9 billion a week over the past month.
Whether crypto can hold retail's interest will largely depend on bitcoin. The cryptocurrency briefly traded above $87,000 last week before slipping to around $83,000 at the time of writing.
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