Using unique data on mutual fund portfolios with different investment scopes, we study the extent of international diversification. Mutual funds invest in a surprisingly limited number of stocks—about 100. The number of holdings from a given region declines as the investment scope broadens....

We study different channels through which well-known benchmark indexes impact asset allocations, capital flows, and asset prices across countries, using unique monthly micro-level data of benchmark compositions and mutual fund investments during 1996-2014. Benchmarks are useful for...

Using micro-level data on mutual funds from different financial centers investing in equity and bonds, this paper analyzes how investors and managers behave and transmit shocks across countries. The paper shows that the volatility of mutual fund investments is quantitatively driven by both the...

This paper uses micro-level data on mutual funds from different financial centers investing in equity and bonds to study how investors and managers behave and transmit shocks across countries. The paper finds that the volatility of mutual fund investments is driven quantitatively by both the...

This paper explores the geography of portfolio flows emanating from institutional investors located in mature markets. We identify precise global and regional dynamics in equity and bond flows. Very few countries happen to receive (or lose) funding in isolation. We also find strong evidence of...

With the collapse of the TMT bubble and a number of high-profile scandals of corporate governance around the world, the language of finance is being re-written to include market inefficiency. Not surprisingly, there is an increasing premium on market information - national and international. As...

Do market comovements affect international portfolio investment? We examine whether there are systematic changes made to the holdings of equities listed on U.S. stock exchanges by foreign fund managers when their home markets become more correlated with the U.S. We concentrate on international...

Using unique micro data on U.S. institutional investor portfolios, this paper studies how capital, meant to be invested globally, is actually diversified internationally. We show that although the mutual fund industry has moved toward funds that have more flexibility to invest across countries...

We examine the geographic distribution of the shareholders of the U.S. Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs) and document that a customer of an RBOC is more likely to invest in his local company than in an RBOC in another service area. Holdings of the local RBOC tend to be larger than...

Uncertainty about national income growth poses significant macroeconomic risk to households all over the world. To help reduce investors' exposure, researchers have proposed a controversial new set of security markets called macro markets. These international markets would trade long-term claims...