'Time in the market, not timing the market' is investors' best bet as coronavirus rattles markets, Bank of America vice chair says

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• Investors should think about their long-term goals even amid wild market swings due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to Bank of America's vice chair.

• "The reality is, it's time in the market, not timing the market," Keith Banks, Bank of America's vice chair and head of investment solutions, said during a Tuesday morning interview with CNBC.

• Banks recommends that investors build back equity exposure, even as markets reel from the coronavirus outbreak.
• Read more on Business Insider.

Investors should think about the long-term and not get caught up in the current coronavirus-induced market swings, according to Bank of America's vice chair.

"I think a lot of people are trying to get clever right now and time the market," Keith Banks, Bank of America's vice chair and head of investment solutions, said during a Tuesday morning interview with CNBC.

He continued: "The reality is, it's time in the market, not timing the market."

Global markets have been roiled by a constant stream of news about the coronavirus pandemic - climbing infection rates, death tolls, and economic fallout amid social distancing measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. US stocks have fallen more than 30% from all-time highs in February, entering into a bear market at the fastest pace ever and ending a record historic expansion.

Volatility has also increased, sending stocks on wild swings. Still, Banks says that investors should stay the course and play the long game.

Read more: GOLDMAN SACHS: Buy these 15 high-yielding, cash-rich stocks as coronavirus uncertainty forces companies to slash dividend payments

Staying exposed to equity markets from the 1930s through today would have yielded an investor roughly 15,000%, according to Banks. But if that investor missed out on the top 10 best performing days of each decade in that timeframe, those returns would shrink to about 91%, he said.

"There's this gravitational pull when markets are gyrating around," Banks said, adding that investors usually want to sell when markets are being hit hard or try to buy when they see things going up. "You tend to do the wrong thing at the wrong time."

Instead, Banks recommends staying focused on the long-term and building back equity exposure. Within equities, he likes large-cap US stocks, he said.

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