I examine the enormous trading volume in the first two days of trading following an initial public offering (IPO) with a sample of Nasdaq IPOs. The composition of trading varies widely with the initial return and not all trading is investor-related. Cold IPOs have a high proportion of interdealer sell trades, whereas hot IPOs have balanced investor buying and selling. Market makers hold zero inventory throughout trading, offsetting any investor inventory imbalance with a trade with the lead underwriter. The paper also helps resolve the disconnect reported in the literature between high initial trading volume and low “flipping” activity.

We study hedge funds that imposed discretionary liquidity restrictions (DLRs) on investor shares during the financial crisis. DLRs prolong fund life, but impose liquidity costs on investors, creating a potential conflict of interest. Ostensibly, funds establish DLRs to limit performance-driven withdrawals that could force fire sales of illiquid assets. However, after they restrict investor liquidity, DLR funds do not reduce illiquid stock sales and underperform a control sample of non-DLR funds. Consequently, DLRs appear to negatively impact fund family reputation. After the crisis, funds from DLR families faced difficulties raising capital and were more likely to cut their fees.