Millennials took one look at their financial future and, early on, realized it was bleak.
The YOLO generation started saving for retirement — stuffing away money in 401(k)-type accounts — nine years earlier than their baby boomer parents did, according to a new study.
Charles Schwab Corp.’s Retirement Reimagined study points to the lack of pension plans, through which companies would take care of workers through their retirement, as one factor pushing millennials to start saving for retirement on their own.

Millennials, worse off financially than their parents in many ways, also are less likely to own homes, a source in itself of retirement funding for boomers.
Despite their efforts to put money aside early, many millennials worry that they won't actually be able to retire, and their view of what retirement means is also much different than boomers’.
“Millennial retirees will spend 24% less time on financial matters than boomers, using their savings to pursue their desired lifestyle and passions,” according to the report, which surveyed 5,000 Americans and used predictive analytics to anticipate retirement outcomes and attitudes by generation.
Recently, millennials say they’ve taken a pause in putting money aside. Nearly half of 18- to 35-year-olds are waiting “until things return to normal,” according to a survey earlier this year by Fidelity Investments.
Many younger workers likely are saving earlier for retirement than boomers simply by virtue of being auto-enrolled into their company’s 401(k) plan rather than having to opt into such plans, as boomers had to. More workplace retirement plans are also adding auto-escalation clauses, where participants’ contributions as a percentage of their pretax paychecks are automatically bumped up 1% a year.
Schwab’s study predicts that millennial retirees will be more than 150% more likely to invest in crypto and digital investments in retirement than boomers. That jibes with a finding in an Investopedia financial literacy study released earlier this month. That survey of 4,000 Americans found that 28% of millennials plan on using crypto to support themselves financially in retirement.
“The good news is that millennials have more time before they retire to take risk,” said Rob Williams, managing director of financial planning, retirement income and wealth management at Charles Schwab Corp. “But over time retirement success comes from tried-and-true things like diversification, having ownership in the growth of the U.S. and global economy through traditional stocks — things that have cash flows and generate growth — and right now crypto doesn’t qualify as having that.”
Retiring RIA seller David Laidlaw alleges the Carnegie valued his stake on $11.7 million EBITA while pitching potential buyers on $21.3 million.
New tool gives RIAs and family offices AI help vetting private market deals, with some users reportedly halving review time.
Investors got projected returns dressed up as real ones, SEC says
Parents must still act to get the $1,000 federal seed and employer contributions, giving financial advisors a role in the rollout.
FINRA booted Rudy Anguiano from the industry for “conversion - the intentional and unauthorized taking of another person’s property.”
As AI makes financial information more accessible than ever, Lana Hock explains why human judgment, trust, and empathy remain the qualities clients value most in a financial advisor
Northern Trust’s Ken Lassner shows advisors how to convert volatility into after-tax portfolio gains