Social Insurances and Risky Financial Market Participation: Evidence from China

Using four-wave national longitudinal survey data, this study estimates the influence of pension and medical insurance on risky financial market participation for individuals aged >= 45 years in China. Three key findings emerge. First, both pension and medical insurance positively affect the probability of holding risky financial assets and their shares. However, both insurances' influences are almost insignificant when addressing the heterogeneity problem. Second, pension's positive effect is greater for lower-risk financial assets (bonds) than for higher-risk financial assets (stocks), but the results are reversed for medical insurance. Third, the influences of social insurance differ by age and the hukou group, as well as by the type of pension and medical insurance.