Generation Z investors in the U.S. start investing at an average age of 19, earlier than the older generations compared in a study by Grayscale head of research Zach Pandl. Assuming retirement at 65, the early start gives Gen Z 46 years to invest, potentially allowing more time to withstand volatility and increasing the role digital assets can play in long-term portfolios, Pandl said.

By comparison, millennials begin investing at an average age of 25, Generation X at 32 and baby boomers at 35, according to Pandl’s data. Gen Z’s investment horizon is therefore more than 50% longer than the horizon baby boomers had when they started investing.

Early start provides more time to withstand volatility

Pandl attributed Gen Z’s potential advantage to more than the effects of compound interest. Early in a person’s career, a large share of wealth consists of so-called human capital, or future income. That share declines with age as accumulated financial assets grow.

Young investors therefore have more time to recover from periods of market volatility while continuing to save and invest over subsequent decades, Pandl said.

He said this could be particularly relevant to digital assets, which are highly volatile but may also offer significant long-term growth potential.

“Starting earlier gives investors more time to absorb volatility, potentially expanding the utility function digital assets can have in a long-term portfolio,” Pandl said.

Studies point to asset accumulation

Previous research has also indicated strong interest among Gen Z in cryptocurrencies and other financial instruments. A 2023 Bitget study of 255,000 respondents across 26 countries found that Gen Z and millennials had the highest levels of digital-currency ownership compared with older generations.

Binance reported in July 2026 that Gen Z represented nearly half of the users of its traditional-finance products. It also found that 30% of young investors began investing while they were still studying and that 77% had a financial education.

Binance Research reported in August that Gen Z investors also showed a tendency to accumulate assets. Purchases were the only activity in 22% of Gen Z direct-equity accounts, while 76% of Gen Z accounts on bStocks were used solely for accumulation. The corresponding figure for traditional-finance derivatives was 60%.

Leveraged exchange-traded funds accounted for only 5.9% of Gen Z trading volume, according to Binance Research.

The trend extended beyond traditional investments. A survey by The New Consumer and Coefficient Capital found that 31% of Americans believed prediction markets would become a more important part of culture, with the strongest interest coming from Gen Z and millennials.

Chainalysis has also forecast a significant increase in stablecoin use, linking the expected growth in part to a transfer of financial activity from older generations to millennials and Gen Z.

Source: Incrypted