40% of People in Their 20s and 30s Engage in Asset Management; Investment Trusts and Domestic Stocks Dominate; Men Actively and Women Passively Start Investing

Survey Overview Cross Marketing Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Mikio Igarashi) conducted a "Survey on Finance (2026)" in April 2026, targeting 3,200 men and women aged 20-39 across Japan. Gen Z, known for high information literacy, is said to feel that traditional asset formation is difficult under low-interest conditions. This analysis focused on the realities of asset management, including investment products, motivations, objectives, stock selection criteria, and reasons for not investing.

Survey Results ### Asset Management Participation and Investment Products 39% of men and women in their 20s and 30s engage in asset management, with higher rates among men in their 30s (46%) and 20s (40%). The most common investment products are "Investment trusts including NISA" (64%) and "Domestic stocks" (39%), followed by "Foreign stocks" (17%). "Investment trusts including NISA" are highly popular among women in their 30s, while "Domestic stocks" are prevalent among men in their 20s and 30s.

### Motivations and Objectives for Asset Management The top three motivations are "Recommendations from family or friends" (26%), "Video content such as YouTube" (25%), and "System reforms such as the expansion of NISA/iDeCo" (24%). Women tend to rely on recommendations, while men lean toward video content. Both men and women in their 30s cite system reforms. It appears women start investing passively while men do so actively. Common objectives include "Preparing for retirement," "Preparing for emergencies," "Utilizing tax breaks," "Growing assets beyond bank deposits," "Creating funds for living expenses," and "Hedging against inflation." Women in their 30s show particularly high rates for "Preparing for retirement" (45%) and "Preparing for emergencies" (36%).

### Stock Investment Objectives and Selection Criteria For those holding domestic/foreign stocks, the primary objectives are "Capital gains" and "Dividend income," both at around 60%. "Capital gains" are highly popular among men in their 30s. Stock selection criteria include "High dividend yield" (39%), "Attractive shareholder perks" (30%), "Performance growth" (27%), and "Undervaluated stock price" (26%).

### Reasons for Not Investing Reasons for not engaging in asset management, such as "Lack of knowledge," "Fear of loss," and "Lack of investment funds," were relatively limited, cited by only about 15%. However, 60% of non-investors stated they have "never thought about it."