Irish retail investors invested heavily in US tech during 2025 

US tech firms accounted for nine of the top 12 most traded stocks this year

Nvidia, the world's most valuable company, topped the list for the most traded stock by Irish retailer investors this year. 

Irish retail investors heavily invested in technology stocks during 2025, driven largely by a surge in valuations due to AI, with nine of the 12 most traded stocks coming from the US tech sector, a new analysis by online stockbroker Degiro found.

Chipmaker Nvidia, the largest company in the world by market capitalisation, topped the list for Irish retail investors this year followed by Google’s parent company Alphabet, carmaker Tesla, Intel and Amazon. Another chipmaker, AMD, stood in sixth place, followed by data analytics firm Palantir, the RealReal, Microsoft, Bank of Ireland, Apple, and Berkshire Hathaway.

Divisional board member at Degiro, Frans Kuijlaars, said the high trading activity in technology stocks reflects a global trend “that has also found its way into Irish portfolios”.

“The focus is not only on traditional tech heavyweights such as Nvidia or Google's parent company Alphabet, but also on relatively unknown growth stocks such as The RealReal,” he said. The RealReal is an online marketplace for used luxury items which went public in 2019.

According to Degiro, tech stocks accounted for an above-average share of the portfolios held during 2025.

The ranking by invested assets is again led by Nvidia, Tesla and Alphabet, whose holdings increased by around 56% over the course of the year. Overall, all seven members of the "Magnificent Seven" — Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, Meta, Microsoft, Tesla — are represented among the 12 largest positions.

There were three Irish firms in the top 12 of the invested assets during 2025, AIB, Ryanair, and Bank of Ireland.

"Technology stocks continue to account for the largest share of Irish retail investors' assets, with appetite for many such stocks even increasing. Over one third of stocks held by our customers fall into this category," Mr Kuijlaars said.

The volume invested in the sector rose by 14% year-on-year to just under €450m. Mr Kuijlaars said this is a clear indication that many investors remain convinced of the long-term prospects of the technology sector.

In terms of the breakdown of the portfolio structure of Irish Degiro investors shows that equities account for around 60% of invested assets, with exchange traded funds accounting for some 36%. The average account size rose by 9% to approximately €21,000 in 2025.

"Irish investors are clearly focusing on the stock market but are holding slightly higher liquidity reserves than their international counterparts, possibly in order to be able to react flexibly to possible market corrections,” Mr Kuijlaars said.

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According to recent data from the Central Bank of Ireland, the market value of Irish resident holdings of securities stood at just under €6 trillion as of the end of September — an increase of €353m over the quarter. Of this total, Irish pension funds account for €51bn while household investments account for €28.26bn.

Listed shares accounted for €2.4trn of the total with the US being the primary destination for Irish resident investment in stocks accounting for 58% of the total value or €1.4trn. In comparison, the Irish stock market only accounts for 2% or €49bn, of the total money Irish investment in stocks.

In terms of households holdings of listed shares, it reached an all-time high during the third quarter, reaching €11.5bn. However, this is largely due to the increase in the overall total market value which increased by around €700m in the quarter.