Young affluent investors pushing for ‘peak’ investment performance

New research from HSBC UK shows that young affluent investors aged between 25-34 years old have the most diversified investment portfolios compared to any other age group, and 95% are seeking to explore new asset classes in the next 12 months.

Young mass affluent investors also have ambitious plans to grow their wealth, with goals to grow returns by close to a third (31%) on average over the course of this year.

This ‘high performance’ attitude when it comes to their wealth is powered by an ongoing commitment to education, with that age group consuming more information and educational content on wealth and investing than any other demographic.

Thirst for learning amongst young investors driving performance

Mass affluent investors aged between 25 and 34 years old are indeed very proactive around enhancing their knowledge of wealth, and aware of the impact this has on their portfolio performance. In fact, when asked to name the main driver of their financial success, 40% attributed this to their education on investing, against an average of 28% across all age groups.

Advice from friends and family was the leading source of information for investment decisions for 57% of young investors, while 54% said they relied on educational content including AI, 50% listened to business and money podcasts regularly, while 44% read books on investing and 33% sourced tips from social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.

Carl Watchorn, Head of Premier Banking at HSBC UK, commented on the trend:

“We know that Premier customers have big ambitions when it comes to their wealth, and we are constantly evolving our offering to suit their increasingly sophisticated needs.

“Young investors are seeking to educate themselves on ways they can maximise their financial performance even further, and we are committed to creating more learning opportunities for our customers.

“This is why we have launched our inaugural UK Wealth Investment Summit this year, which gives Premier customers access to tips to help them feel more empowered when it comes to managing their money.”

Only one in 20 young investors say no to further diversification

Young affluent investors have the most diversified portfolios out of any age group, although they under-index on holding more ‘traditional’ savings and investments compared to average. For example, 73% say they had a stocks and shares ISAs, compared to 83% of 45-54 year olds, and only 46% have a cash ISA compared to a 57% average across all age groups. Only 48% hold funds or traditional stocks, compared to 68% of over 55s.

However, they are more likely to hold diversified, alternative assets in their portfolio. One in five (20%) confirm they hold investments in private equity, vs an average of 14%. Gold and raw materials are also highly popular (28% vs 15% average), as well as cryptocurrency assets (54% vs 20%) and Forex (22% vs 7%).

Despite already having the most diversified portfolios of any age group, they are also the most likely to be open minded to expanding this further, with only 5% saying they are not open to holding any more new assets, vs 39% of over 55s.

Emma Tilt, Head of Digital Wealth at HSBC UK, added: “It’s interesting that people with higher levels of education on investing and wealth tend to be more open minded to more high-risk assets.

“However, it’s important to ensure that any information that is consumed always comes from reputable sources. Financial institutions have an opportunity to facilitate access to high quality, reliable resources for customers, regardless of where they are at on their investment journey. We are committed to educating customers at all steps of their journey, from facilitating access to hundreds of pre-packaged funds for beginners and a Wealth Select List to help them choose, all the way through to servicing the complex needs of our Private Bank customers.”

Media enquiries to:
Leila Taleb
Leila.Taleb@hsbc.com or
UKpressoffice@hsbc.co.uk

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1300 affluent adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 18th - 26th February 2026. The survey was carried out online.