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Key points
- BrainChip shares have been bid notably higher this year
- It isn't just retail investors that are buying
- BrainChip has a large amount of institutional money invested in its shares
The BrainChip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN) share price is pushing higher on Monday.
In afternoon trade, the artificial intelligence technology company's shares are up 2.5% to $1.42.
While the BrainChip share price is trading well off its highs for the month, it is still up a very impressive 80% since the start of the year.
Who is buying BrainChip shares?
Although BrainChip shares have become a favourite with day traders and a small pocket of retail investors, they are not the only ones that have been buying.
When the company released its quarterly update last week, it also released an update on its top 20 shareholders.
Management commented: "Given the recent volume of share-trading activity, the Company believes it is appropriate to provide investors with an update of our Top 20 Shareholder List."
Who's in the top 20?
The company's largest shareholder remains its Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Peter Van Der Made, with 160.3 million shares. This equates to an interest of 9.351% in the company.
After Van Der Made, the share registry is dominated by a host of investment banks. Merrill Lynch Australia is one of the largest shareholders with a 6.429% stake, as is HSBC Australia with its separate 4.748%, 3.678%, and 1.45% stakes. Another notable shareholder is Citicorp with an interest of 4.227%.
These shareholders are listed as custody nominees, which usually means that they are investing these funds on behalf of institutional clients.
Among the other largest shareholders are BNP Paribas, JP Morgan, Comsec, UBS, LDA Capital, and its former CEO, Louis Dinardo. Despite Mr Dinardo's unceremonious exit from the company last year, he hasn't sold any of his shares. The former CEO still owns 11.8 million shares, which equates to a 0.687% stake.
Time will tell whether these investments generate strong long term returns for their holders.
