Year: 2020
Type: dissertation
Abstract: By examining mutual fund flows in the U.S. before and after the Covid-19 outbreak, I find evidence that mutual fund investors collectively and consistently value sustainability, even during times of significant market volatility. While not definitive, it also seems like this effect is further amplified during the initial three months of the pandemic. During this time, a total of $10.5 billion escaped the Low sustainability funds and $1.6 billion entered highly ranked funds when compared to the average categories. Possible explanations for this phenomenon can be found from preferences of institutional investors, nonpecuniary motives, or naive expectations of higher performance. However, rational performance expectations cannot be justified based on either my data or prior research.
Source: Aaltodoc (Aalto University)
Author: Kouti, Oskari
Language: English
Subfield: Finance
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7029234074