Retail investing among Gen Z has surged dramatically over the past decade, with 25-year-old participation jumping from just 6% in 2015 to 37% in 2024, according to JPMorgan. This spike was especially pronounced during the pandemic, when social media exposure and accessible mobile trading platforms led many young people, especially men, into the markets. Male participation in investment rose from 20% to 30%, widening the gender gap, while female participation remained flat at about 35% of retail investors overall. JPMorgan researchers emphasized that while the pandemic may have created a temporary cohort effect, the new baseline for Gen Z investment participation is likely to remain well above pre-2020 levels.
The study also highlighted positive shifts in income-based access to investing. Individuals from below-median income groups represented about 20% of investors in 2014, but their share rose to 31% by May 2025, the highest outside of periods affected by direct stimulus payments. Despite these improvements, significant gaps persist, both in income and gender. The authors talked about the need for targeted financial education, noting that new investors are increasingly vulnerable to risks like tax surprises during bull markets and emotional reactions to losses during downturns. As more first-time investors enter the financial system, JPMorgan suggests financial advisors may need to evolve their roles to support these shifting dynamics.
Its interesting to think something like TikTok or Instagram could be a key factor leading in a spike of retail investing from the males in Gen Z.
ReplyDeleteGen Z is finding new ways to build wealth, focusing more on investing early. Could these choices change what financial security means for their future?
ReplyDeleteIt is very cool to see that Gen Z is utilizing social media in means to build financial stability for their future. These choices very well could make major differences in Gen Z's perception of investment and approaches to their finances in the future.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to see how social media platforms are impacting Gen Z's perception of investing and financial education. Although, with the amount of public content that is being created every day, one must wonder about the validity of information that is being posted to these platforms. Hopefully social media will be a useful tool for Gen Z in building their financial future and not a detrimental one.
ReplyDeleteThis is an encouraging statistic to see as stock and equity ownership used to be something only the rich and elites did/had access to. Our generation faces higher costs of living and lower salaries than generations prior so it is good to see that we are combatting this with finding ways to make our money to work for us.
ReplyDeleteDo you see the percentage of Gen Z participating in retail investing to continue to increase or stay stagnate at where they are now. I wonder what's the biggest platform being used for the information and if there's going to be a specific social media platform where groups that are in online retail investing come together.
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