Download This PaperFund Names vs. Family Names: Implications for Mutual Fund Flows
43 Pages Posted: 4 May 2020 Last revised: 4 Mar 2022
Date Written: April 7, 2020
Abstract
An emerging literature shows that investors are sensitive to mutual fund names. Using a sample of U.S. equity funds over the period 1993–2017, we provide evidence that funds with names that are closer to those of their families attract more flows and display a stronger performance-flow relationship. This name bias is more persistent among old and large fund families and in retail funds. Our results are in line with the literature on social biases and costly searches and show that seemingly innocuous differences in fund attributes, such as fund names, can translate into significant differences in investor decisions.
Keywords: Mutual Fund Flows, Fund Names, Behavioral Biases, Fund Families
JEL Classification: G02, G11, G23
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation