Stock markets, more or less since their origins (when the Dutch East India allowed investors to buy shares in the 1600s), have often been viewed as realms for the elite. The upper classes have always been able to afford to inject their wealth and watch it grow – but for the most part, it’s always been difficult for people with less income to do the same, at least with anything approaching the same success rate.
This may never really change in stock markets, even if there are now options like low-fee mutual funds that sometimes appeal to younger or lower-income investors. However, the good news is that these days there are more and more alternative means of investment that can be more appealing to younger generations with less wealth to spare.
These are a few that younger investors may well start to favor moving forward.
Mobile Stock Investment
In Capital Ethiopia’s piece on the digital future from just this past September, it was noted that stocks seem to many like an investment opportunity only for the rich – but also that digital investments mean new chances for anyone to invest. Indeed, we may be at the beginning of a new wave of investment methods favored particularly by the younger generations who want to make use of intuitive digital tools. Specifically, new companies like Stash, Robinhood, and Acorn, with attractive web presences and very smooth and convenient apps, are providing new ways for users to invest in stocks. The simple setups, low fees, and helpful trading tools these programs offer help users to feel a sense of control even as they invest in the same stock markets they may not trust through conventional means.
Forex Trading
The process for forex trading has become easier thanks to online resources and even mobile apps. It doesn’t involve the same complexities (or fees) the stock market does – a bonus for younger generations that want easy, intuitive methods and a straightforward learning process. Young people may also trust straight currency values more than stock market prices that they’ve learned can more or less be manipulated by powerful interests. Furthermore, the forex market also allows for a range of different approaches, which can make it more broadly appealing in general. FXCM’s forex trading guide points to the depth and liquidity of the forex markets as reasons that just about any viable strategy an be implemented with maximum efficiency. That doesn’t mean anyone should go in aimlessly, but it does mean forex trading can be tailored to an individual’s specific needs and goals.
Cryptocurrencies
By now you’re probably aware of cryptocurrencies on some level. Ever since bitcoin was introduced just prior to the turn of the decade, new cryptos have been emerging steadily, and the world has slowly been figuring out just what to do with them. And for the most part, this process has led people to treat cryptos more like investable commodities than actual currencies. Investments in cryptocurrency have proven to be risky and unpredictable in the early going, but there’s still value in them as compared to ordinary markets because to some extent cryptocurrency is inherently secure. Explaining why in full detail would take a book, but Alphr’s overview of bitcoin basics can give you the general idea of how digital currency is encrypted and authenticated, and how transactions are tracked. All of this, plus ease of use (once you get used to crypto wallets), sets cryptocurrencies up to be very popular means of investment in the near future.
