The excessive gaming and gambling during COVID-19

Purpose By combining econometrics and multifractal methods, utilizing a financial framework, this paper will examine with objectivity the economic, financial and social impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on society. Design/methodology/approach Through Granger causality, the authors test the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on excessive gaming and gambling activities, and through econometrics and multifractal methods, they combine the results to analyze a possible long-run relationship. Findings The COVID-19 confirmed cases Granger cause all examined stocks. Based on the co-integration technique, and the multifractal cross-correlation analysis, a long-run relationship exists between all examined stocks and COVID-19. Originality/value This is an empirical examination of a very important subject in the field of economics, namely, the consequences of the COVID-19-related events on the behavior of global citizens. It proposes a different and more objective approach (than the interviews and questionnaires) in the examination of this specific subject, through a financial framework, depicting the stock performance of the gaming and online gambling-related companies, and reflecting on the activity of these companies. It combines two different approaches from two different disciplines, namely econometrics and multifractal analysis, to test and describe the causal and the long-run relationship between the phenomena examined, combining the results to an overall and multidimensional view of this occurrence.