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The boom of cryptocurrency investment amongst younger generations and questions to those investing in it.

Thankfully, to date, Gen Z has grown up without having to live through a recession or global financial meltdown. As it currently stands, they have been fortunate enough to live in an era of low levels of inflation and low-interest rates but this could all of course change over the coming months – especially with the momentous hikes we are seeing with energy prices and the cost of living.

On one hand, they haven’t seen the hardship and toll financial uncertainty can have on the economy, job prospects, and on families, but that being said they have lived through a global pandemic.

Their money is not currently doing anything in a bank. Even for the oldest Gen Zs, interest rates have been under 1% for the whole of their adult lives, whereas previous generations have experienced the rate dipping below 4% only twice in the 50 years prior to 2010. We asked our community for their thoughts on alternative newer methods of investing as we were interested in finding out their stance on the rise of alternative investment methods such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether.

“When speaking with our Imagen Insights community, more than a quarter (28%) reported that they are currently investing in cryptocurrency.”

Is it a case that Gen Z is looking to Crypto to make a quick buck as they see the rise of these cryptocurrencies? Or does this play into a long-term goal of setting themselves up for the future and even retirement? Research published this week from Schwab found that less than half of Gen Z is optimistic about reaching retirement goals. Nearly a third (32%) of Gen Z predicts that they will have to retire later than planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When speaking with our Imagen Insights community, more than a quarter (28%) reported that they are currently investing in cryptocurrency. As a Gen X myself, and one slightly warier of the potential financial crash right around the corner and knowing the long-term effects this can have, I want to know what is fueling this movement.

Disrupter apps have made investing more open to the masses. With the ease of access, Gen Z can sit at home in their bedroom investing with no financial adviser as they can speculate themselves.

Is Gen Z investing because they have done a lot of research or have they invested because everyone on social media platforms (e.g. TikTok) says they should? Recent insight work we have conducted found that Gen Z’s least trusted social media platform was TikTok and so it made me wonder where they are turning to for advice? Who are they trusting? And what safety measures do they have in place to avoid losing all investments?

Written by Steve Tapp, (former) Partnerships Manager, Imagen Insights.