New investors are starting younger — and they’re using Instagram to learn about finance, according to a new survey from E*Trade Financial Corp.
According to the latest edition of the firm’s quarterly tracking survey, more than two-thirds of young investors (defined as investors under 30) started investing at age 24 or younger, compared with just 33% of so-called GenX investors (age 35-54) and 31% of Baby Boomers (age 55+).
While investors may be starting younger, they are prioritizing concerns such as finding a house (17%), dating (16%) and planning for a vacation (15%), ahead of planning for retirement (12%), the survey found.
Overall, survey respondents ranked saving for retirement as their top priority (30%), well ahead of the vacation planning (17%) and housing (12%).
Moreover, the survey found that photo-sharing app Instagram is young investors’ favoured social media platform for learning about finance, cited by 40% of respondents, edging out YouTube (39%). Facebook (32%) ranked third, followed by Twitter (20%) and Snapchat (19%).
Accounting for all the demographic groups surveyed, Facebook ranked as the most popular social media platform for learning about finance (24%), followed by Instagram and YouTube, both at 17%.
“It’s encouraging to see young investors jumpstart their financial lives earlier than previous generations,” Mike Loewengart, VP of investment strategy at E*Trade, said in a release. “That said, it’s important to start on the right foot by creating good investing habits at a young age.”
The survey was carried out online from July 1-11, with a sample of 908 self-directed U.S. investors who manage at least US$10,000 in an online brokerage account.