Corporate insiders dump over $77 billion of stock in the first half of 2026

United States corporate insiders dumped over $77 billion in stocks during the first half of 2026, the highest pace since the 2021 pandemic-fueled frenzy and the second-highest pace in over 20 years. 

U.S. corporate insiders sold $77.6 billion in stock during the first six months of 2026, according to data from EPFR Global Market Intelligence that Finbold analyzed on July 24.

Corporate insiders at publicly traded companies increased their rate of offloading in H1 2026 by 20% year-over-year, shedding $64.67 billion in the first half of 2025. These company executives have been increasing their H1 sell-offs since 2021, when they disposed of nearly $120 billion.

U.S. corporate executives could have sold stocks in H1 2026 at the highest rate since the COVID-19 pandemic to cash out amid lofty stock prices and fears of a potential correction. Furthermore, several experts, including Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, have signaled an imminent stock market crash, as Finbold highlighted. 

Additionally, the Federal Reserve has already raised alarm over rising inflation caused by a boom in AI (Artificial Intelligence), as Finbold reported. 

Corporate insiders dump stock on investors

As the key companies’ stakeholders divested at record rates in H1 2026, their buying pressure remained at a multi-year low. During the first half of 2026, corporate insiders’ buying was at about $6.9 billion, a notable decline since H1 2023. 

The declining conviction in U.S. stocks among corporate insiders has coincided with rising demand from investors. Already, US equity ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds) have attracted more than $880 billion in inflows year-to-date, the highest since in nearly a decade, according to data from Baird Strategas.

As such, surging demand for U.S. equities risks creating a notable divergence, whereby corporate insiders actively sell while retail and ETF investors drive aggressive inflows at potentially elevated valuations.