A third of Americans planning to invest in high-risk, speculative assets: Study

A recent study found that a third of Americans are planning to invest in high-risk, speculative assets this year as a method for financial planning. 

The Northwestern Mutual Planning & Progress Study, which was released in full Wednesday, found that 39 percent of Americans said they are currently investing or will consider investing in cryptocurrency, sport betting/prediction markets, options or meme stocks. 

Responses were collected Jan. 5-21, prior to the war in Iran.

A majority of those respondents said they are investing in volatile markets to account for the lack of financial planning, the survey found. 

Seventy-three percent of respondents who feel financially behind said they believe high-risk, speculative investments will help them reach financial goals more effectively than traditional methods.

“When people feel behind, they often look for shortcuts,” John Roberts, Northwestern Mutual chief field officer, said in a release. 

“But building financial security is rarely about cutting corners. It’s about consistency, discipline, and protection,” he added. 

Still, 32 percent of Generation Z respondents and 24 percent of millennials said they have either already or plan to invest in sports betting or prediction markets in 2026, according to survey results.

And 32 percent of the Gen Z demographic polled has or is planning to invest in crypto while 35 percent of millennials are planning to do the same. 

Lawmakers have warned against volatile investments, specifically in prediction markets, because they are subject to rapid, large price shocks due to an inability to predict the outcome of future events.

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) recently banned his staff from trading on prediction markets, condemning the capacity to place bets on election outcomes, wars, and even the deaths of public figures.

Other Democrats have also slammed prediction markets as a ripe ground for insider trading. Kalshi and Polymarket rolled out new technology to ban politicians, their spouses and athletes from using inside access to gain earnings through early screening. 

However, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) says it’s not enough. 

“Just on the policy piece alone, there are SO many individuals – staff, advisors, consultants, cabinet secretaries, spouses, and more – that can trade on insider information,” she wrote in a post on the social platform X last month.

“This is just a fig leaf to deflect from criticism. We need to do more,” she added. 

More than half, 52 percent, of Americans said they place too much emphasis on building wealth or growing their assets without planning how to protect their assets and manage against risks, per the poll.

“I do think it’s important to recognize, especially when it comes to finance playing, more things change, and more things stay to say in some regards. Saving early is still important. Protecting risk is still important,” Leo Tucker, a general agent with Northwestern Mutual, said during a Tuesday media roundtable.  

“Fundamental financial planning, in my opinion, has not changed. The vehicles have different names, there’s more bells and whistles, things like Bitcoin, but the sound basics, say save early, save often, save consistently. Those are mathematical,” he added. 

Study participants were mostly pessimistic about future economic growth, with 45 percent of respondents saying they expected the economy to weaken compared with 36 percent who expected it to improve.

The Northwestern Mutual financial planning study included 4,375 participants over the age of 18 who were polled in online interviews.