2 of 3 Investment App Users Got Started During Covid, Revolutionizing the Market
The fintech revolution is here and investment apps are leading the charge.
Robinhood, Acorns, Betterment and other apps have simplified the investment process for everyday Americans by removing once-common barriers to access, like complex jargon and high trading fees.
Investment apps shook up the archaic financial landscape by giving people user-friendly platforms to access the stock market with as little as $5.
Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which coincided with economic worries, stimulus checks and growing interest in investing apps and cryptocurrency.
This proved to be a perfect environment for app use to accelerate — especially among new and young investors. In a new survey of nearly 2,000 Americans conducted by The Penny Hoarder, 66% of respondents only began using an investment app in 2020 or 2021, and two out of three said the pandemic led them to become more serious users.
The Penny Hoarder’s survey found more striking findings about investment app users, who are getting their feet wet in a stock market once roped off for white collars and Wall Street elites.
- They’re new to the scene: About half said they had little to no investing experience prior to using an app.
- They’re starting small: About half of respondents have less than $1,000 invested on an app.
- They’re using this new access to: Dabble with crypto, fractional shares and meme stocks.
- Social media is a primary source of investing advice: Most investment app users flock to Facebook and YouTube for investment advice, although 18-to-24-year-olds also heavily favor TikTok and Instagram.
- Celebrities also hold sway: 44% of all respondents said they would be more likely to invest in a stock if Elon Musk tweeted about it. Among high-income earners — those earning over $150,000 — 67% said they’d be likely to follow Musk’s advice.
EarthyRealist.com 