Swedish Private Investors: What They Read, What They Trust, and How They Decide

Retail investors are no longer the tagalongs of the equity markets—they are central figures in shaping trends, creating liquidity, and questioning institutional narratives. In Sweden, this shift is increasingly visible as more individuals embrace investing through stocks, funds, and even crypto. But what truly guides their decisions? Where do they seek insight, and who do they trust?

A recent study by Inderes, conducted by Nepa, offers one of the most in-depth looks to date into the minds of 1,000 Swedish private investors. The findings paint a picture of an investor community that is pragmatic, media-aware, and more sceptical than sentimental.

1. The Swedish Retail Investor Is a Digital Native in Transition

28% of the Swedish population  had traded shares or invested in funds or bonds over the past 2–3 years, revealing a significant and growing base of retail investors. While 41% of these hold portfolios under 100,000 SEK, a sizable 20% manage over 500,000 SEK.

Behaviour correlates with affluence and tenure. Wealthier investors tend to trade more frequently and participate actively in online investment communities. More than half of all respondents had taken part in investment discussions on forums or social media, signalling that financial decision-making is increasingly social and participatory.

The data reflects a self-educating and engaged retail class. Investors build confidence over time, progressing from occasional explorers to informed actors embedded in online financial subcultures.

2. Trust Follows Use But It Doesn’t Come Easy

When it comes to sourcing information, Swedish investors are cautious and discerning. They gravitate towards well-established, transparent channels. Financial media tops the list, used by 57% of respondents, followed by traditional bank or investment advisors (39%), friends and family (35% each), and online forums (34%).

Trust rankings align closely with usage:

• 65% of investors trust financial media/news.
• 59% trust their banks.
• Just 37% trust commissioned/paid research providers.
• Only 22% express trust in social media influencers.

Commissioned research, as it has been understood in the Swedish market, though seen as more serious and structured than influencer content, still lags in credibility. This is largely due to limited exposure and an underlying perception that it serves the interests of the company, not the investor. Even among those aware of it, trust varies significantly by behaviour: frequent traders and forum users tend to be more trusting, while less active investors are hesitant.

Interestingly, around 16% of all respondents were unable to rate the trustworthiness of commissioned research at all—a revealing indicator of its unfamiliarity and current status in the market. 

3. Self-Reliance Is the New Normal in Investment Decisions

If trust is about reputation, decision-making is about agency. And here, Swedish investors are remarkably self-directed.

Asked which sources most influence their investment decisions:

• 59% cited their own research.
• 41% trusted their gut.
• Just 16% said they considered commissioned research recommendations important.
• And only 15% valued the target prices those reports offer.

Even within more active segments—frequent traders or forum contributors—the preference for own analysis remained dominant. Commissioned research may be seen as a tool, but not a compass. Investors are looking to validate their decisions. 

This is consistent with the broader cultural trend: Swedes, like many Nordic investors, favour autonomy, transparency, and data over hype or persuasion. Their trust is earned not through authority, but through evidence and objectivity.

4. The Forum Effect: A Rising Culture of Peer Learning

Participation in online discussions appears to be a key inflection point in investor maturity. After just one to two years of investing, a majority of investors begin engaging in digital communities. This signals a shift away from traditional one-way communication (from institutions to individuals) towards multi-directional peer exchange.

Investors involved in forums also:

• Trade more frequently
• Hold larger portfolios
• Are more likely to explore and trust commissioned research
• Rely less on personal networks (e.g., friends or family) for investment advice

The forum effect is real. It accelerates sophistication and pushes investors toward more complex sources. But it doesn’t lead to blind trust. Even among active forum users, commissioned research remains supplementary, not central. To increase the significance of commissioned research and win investors’ trust, analysts need to participate in these discussions and work in the trenches with the investors.

Conclusion: A Sophisticated, Sceptical, Self-Reliant Investor Class

The Swedish retail investor is not easily swayed. They’re curious, but cautious. Social, but not impressionable. They begin their information search with media, grow through communities, and rely primarily on themselves.

Information sources must prove not only their competence, but their neutrality. Credibility is earned through transparency and usefulness—never assumed. Investors trust what they can test, and they test what they can understand.

This study makes clear that the path to influencing Swedish private investors is not paved with more content or louder voices. It lies in delivering clarity over clutter, insight over influence, and independence over promotion.

The rise of retail investing is putting growing pressure on commissioned research providers, highlighting the need for the industry to evolve and better serve the expanding pool of everyday investors.