The Brexit effect: the case of UK ADR performance one year later

ABSTRACT

In an unexpected outcome, UK voters decided that it was time to exit the European Union based on the results of a vote held on 23 June 2016. Studies of the affects and implication of Brexit include a study showing that the vote was met with a negative short-term wealth effect for UK American depository receipts (ADRs). This study examines the one-year anniversary holding period returns of these ADRs along with the British Pound and the FTSE 100 to discover any lingering effects from the historical vote. Results indicate that the one-year holding period returns for the ADRs averaged 5.8% for the year while the FTSE gained 4.8%, the S&P 500 gained 15.4% and the Pound lost 13.2% of its value.

KEYWORDS:

• Brexit
• American depository receipts
• portfolio diversification
• wealth effects
• event studies

JEL CLASSIFICATION:

• G11
• G12
• G14
• G15

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.