Behind the Data – Retail Investments by Irish Households: Introducing Enhanced Data Coverage of Household Investment Holdings via Euro-Area Custodians
Ciaran Meehan, Brian Power and Philip Corpuz
August 2026
This Behind the Data publication introduces enhanced data on direct investments by Irish households in our Securities Holdings Statistics. By incorporating Irish household data held with other euro-area custodians for the first time, we increase the coverage of household investment holdings whilst providing new and more granular insights into household security holdings than previously available in our official statistics.
Introduction
In recent years, there has been a well-documented and growing policy focus on retail investment participation amongst Irish households, reflecting the relevance of this topic for household financial resilience, capital market development, and wider economic growth.
The Central Bank has published targeted research and analysis on this topic. The 2025 'Retail Investor Participation in Ireland (PDF 1.59MB)' report analyses key drivers of and barriers to household market participation, drawing on detailed survey data on investment activities. A recent Behind the Data publication (Moreno ; 2026) covering the composition of Irish households’ holdings via investment funds examined Irish households' investment fund holdings using a 'look-through' approach—which disaggregates underlying securities within funds to reveal actual asset exposure rather than treating funds as single holdings. The Department of Finance Funds Sector 2030 report recommends that public bodies such as the Central Bank continue to review and expand the range of data available on retail investments to address existing gaps. In this regard, enhanced data will also be essential for assessing the impact of any future policy changes in this area. Findings from previous research have established that retail investment participation in Ireland is low by international comparison, and that increased household engagement with financial markets has the potential to generate economic benefits for both retail investors and the wider economy.
This publication seeks to address some of the existing data gaps by expanding the coverage and granularity of Irish household direct investment activities. For the first time, we include household investments held in custody with other euro-area custodians in our data. The growing share of Irish household investments held in custody with other euro-area custodians reflects the expansion of online investment platforms—many of which are non-resident but operate in Ireland under EU passporting arrangements. These online trading platforms have offered households an alternative route to access capital markets and their inclusion now provides a fuller picture of investment activities by Irish households. This methodological enhancement increases the aggregated market value of securities directly held by Irish households by €6.1 billion or 21 per cent.
Furthermore, this publication presents new and more granular insights into the direct investment holdings of Irish households, including analysis of portfolio allocation across domestic and non-domestic custodians. Insights include analysis of transactions and revaluation effects driving portfolio value changes; breakdown by instrument type—equities, bonds, and investment funds—with investment fund holdings further disaggregated by fund type; and examination of concentration risks including Mag 7 US Stock exposure, offering a detailed picture of how households allocate their direct investment portfolios.
The Data
The Security Holdings Statistics (SHS) are collected by the Central Bank of Ireland in accordance with ECB/2012/24, as amended by ECB/2018/7. The data are collected on a quarterly frequency across resident institutional sectors (e.g. Households, Banks, Investment Funds, etc) and captures these sectors investments in listed equities and bonds on a security-by-security basis. The published statistics show trends in the market value of holdings by each reference period, with breakdowns available by issuer country, issuer and holder sector, instrument type and currency of denomination.
In accordance with the SHS Regulation, data may be collected directly or indirectly from respective institutional sectors. In Ireland, financial sector investors report directly to the Central Bank of Ireland, whilst data for households and non-financial corporations are collected indirectly via custodians that are resident here. Therefore, resident custodian data does not provide full coverage, as investors may use non-domestic custodians. Under the reporting framework, Irish resident custodians report all holdings that they manage, regardless of the country of residence of the underlying investor. This is the same reporting practice applied in other euro-area countries. For example, when an Irish household holds securities through a custodian in another euro-area country, those holdings are reported to the respective National Central Bank.
There has been observed growth in cross-border holdings reported by other euro-area countries for Irish investors. Following a data quality assessment, cross-border holdings are being included in published statistics for the first time. This Behind the Data complements this enhancement.
This analysis focuses on households’ direct investment activities on a first counterparty basis. Household holdings of investment fund and money market fund shares are recorded as holdings of the fund itself rather than its underlying investments. Additionally, the data do not incorporate any indirect household exposure to capital markets through insurance and pension arrangements. The data presented relates to the aggregated market value of Irish resident household holdings. Notably, some holdings may be concentrated in a small number of households, and the aggregated data may not be fully representative of individual households.
An increase in the share of Household Investments held with other euro-area custodians in recent years
The market value of Irish households' holdings of securities has increased steadily over the last number of years. At end-Q1 2026, aggregate household holdings of securities totalled €35.1 billion and represented a new time-series high. Of this €35.1 billion, €6.1 billion is accounted for by households’ investment through foreign custodians (Chart 1). Including it increases the value of Irish household security holdings in the data by 21 per cent.
The growing popularity of online digital trading platforms—many of which are resident in other euro-area countries—has likely contributed to the increased relevance of non-domestic custodians since 2020 and enabled increased household participation in capital markets. Non-domestic euro area custodians in Germany, Lithuania, Luxembourg and the Netherlands account for most of these holdings, reflective of the prevalence of neobanks and other digital fintech firms in these jurisdictions. Recent publicly released figures by Revolut reveals that Irish customers hold c. €1.1 billion in investment balances with the fintech provider at end May 2026.
*Note: Increase in Q1 2023 is driven by reclassification / other changes
Growth in household investment holdings primarily driven by price increases
Increases in the market value of securities, rather than an increase in the volume of transactions, have largely driven the growth in total household investment holdings in 2025.
Chart 2 provides a breakdown of the cumulative value of annual transactions and revaluations for households security holdings, by selected year.
Chart 2: Revaluations vs Net Transaction breakdown, by Custodian Type
The market value of household security holdings increased by €4 billion, representing a 13 per cent annual increase in household holdings in 2025. Revaluations due to price movements were the primary driver of this increase, equating to €3.6 billion or 90 per cent of the increase recorded in the year. In contrast, net transactions were more subdued, with positive net transactions of €1.6 billion recorded during the year, accounting for 39 per cent of overall increase in 2025. Negative exchange rate movements offset the positive price and transaction movements in 2025.
Notably, cumulative household net transactions recorded via non-domestic custodians exceeded those via domestic custodians during 2025—€0.9 billion and €0.7 billion, respectively – meaning that households net purchases of securities via non-domestic custodians were higher compared to domestic custodians during the year, by overall value.
Overall, total household net transaction recorded in 2025 declined when compared to 2024 ; net transaction recorded via domestic custodians stood at €2.6 billion in 2024, while net transactions via non-domestic custodians stood at €0.6 billion in the same period. Net transactions in 2024 totalled 3.2 billion and accounted for 50 per cent of the total annual increase in the year. Price revaluations, by comparison, were much lower in 2024 compared to 2025, accounting for €2.6 billion or 41 per cent of the annual increase in 2024.
The impact of price revaluations, exchange rates and net transactions are subject to significant quarterly volatility related to underlying market conditions.
Investments in fund shares and listed shares account for the largest share of household holdings by Instrument Type
Money market and investment fund shares account for an increasing portion of households investments. At end-Q1 2026, households held c. €17.6 billion of investments in fund shares, accounting for c. 50 per cent of total household security holdings (Chart 3). This represents an increase from €9.1 billion or 44 per cent share in Q1 2023.
The granularity of the SHS data allows this category of investment to be broken down by fund type, which indicates that households primarily used funds to invest indirectly into equities. Holdings of equity fund shares amount to €9 billion, representing approximately 25 per cent of total household holdings. When considered alongside households' direct holdings of listed equity shares (€14.2 billion or 40 per cent of total household security holdings) the estimated total household equity exposure is approximately €23.2 billion at end-Q1 2026, representing circa 66 per cent of total household investment holdings. Actual household exposure to listed shares is expected to be higher as other fund categories (mixed and other) will also own shares. The composition of household portfolios by instrument type is broadly similar across domestic and other euro-area custodians.
The data also show that Exchange-Traded Funds (‘ETFs’) account for a significant share of household investment portfolios. At the end-Q1 2026, household holdings of ETFs stood at €5.6 billion, with ETFs accounting for 32 per cent of households’ investment fund holdings or 16 per cent of total household holdings across all instruments. While household holdings of ETFs have increased significantly since Q1 2023, up from €3 billion, the proportional share has remained broadly unchanged. ETF holdings account for a higher share of household investment fund shares with non-domestic euro area custodians compared to domestic custodians, 39 per cent and 31 per cent, respectively.
Irish households display a home bias in their investment holdings
Next, we take a closer look at the issuer profile of households' securities holdings, focusing on the distribution by issuer country and institutional sector. Whilst households hold a geographically and sectorally diverse range of securities, the data reveals a preference for domestic investments. Some 44 per cent of household holdings are issued by Irish-originated entities (Chart 4). Such a home bias is often a common feature of retail investor portfolios. However, the sectoral composition of these holdings varies significantly depending on the geographic origin of the securities. Irish-originated securities display a distinct profile, with households recording a higher proportion of investments in investment funds compared to other regions (Chart 5). Households’ direct holdings of Irish government debt amount to €1.6 billion at end-Q1 2026, with net purchases of Irish government debt amounting to €649 million since the start of 2025.
Holdings of other euro-area issuances also shows a high concentration in investment funds shares/units. Money market funds represent a substantial share of other euro-area issuances held by Irish residents, with the majority domiciled in Luxembourg. Irish households also hold €682 million in government debt securities issued by other euro-area countries at end-Q1 2026.
In contrast, US-originated securities are predominantly issued by Non-Financial Corporations (NFCs), with household holdings comprising primarily of listed equity shares. The data shows a notable concentration in 'Magnificent Seven' technology stocks. At end-Q1 2026, households held €1.6 billion in Mag 7 listed shares, accounting for 34 per cent of all US-originated listed shares and 11 per cent of households' total direct holdings of listed shares. This concentration varies markedly by custodian type: for households using domestic custodians, Mag 7 stocks represent 9 per cent of total listed shares held, whilst non-domestic custodians show substantially higher concentration at 22 per cent, highlighting a higher portfolio concentration of Mag 7 shares among households using non-domestic custodians (Chart 6).
Conclusion
This publication provides a detailed overview of Irish households’ direct investment activities by including, for the first time, securities held with non-domestic euro-area custodians. This methodological improvement adds €6.1 billion (21 per cent) to measured household security holdings, reflecting the growing role of cross-border digital investment platforms. Key findings reveal that aggregate household holdings reached €35.1 billion at end-Q1 2026, driven primarily by positive price revaluations rather than net new transactions. Overall, Irish households exhibit a home bias in their investment portfolios, with 44 per cent of holdings in Irish-originated securities; the sectoral composition of these holdings, however, varies significantly by issuer region. Notably, US equity holdings show substantial concentration in 'Magnificent Seven' technology stocks, particularly among households using non-domestic custodians. The expansion of online trading platforms has facilitated increased household market participation, with non-domestic custodian holdings growing from €950 million (Q1 2020) to €6.1 billion (Q1 2026). Going forward, the inclusion of euro-area custodian data as standard in our data will provide a more complete picture of Irish household investment holdings, supporting evidence-based policymaking in this topical area of interest.
*Email ciaran.meehan@centralbank.ie, brian.power@centralbank.ie, philip.corpuz@centralbank.ie if you have any comments or questions on this note. Comments from David Duignan, Barra McCarthy and Jean Cassidy are gratefully acknowledged. Support from Lána Salmon and Rían Ó Cléirigh with data visualisations is gratefully acknowledged. The views expressed in this note are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Central Bank of Ireland or the ESCB.