Investors between the ages of 18 and 24 currently only allocate 19% of their portfolio to stocks, on average, according to interactive investor’s (ii) latest index of its customers,
This younger age group also holds the highest allocation to cash at 10.6% of their total portfolios, with 25–34-year-olds holding roughly 10% in cash, the index has found.
“While equities continue to make up the bulk of portfolios at 32%, there continues to be a large gap between how the oldest and youngest invest in stocks,” the report found.
Meanwhile, the oldest set of investors (age 65+) was more adventurous, with roughly 39% of their allocation in equities, and the lowest cash allocation of the bunch at 8.6%. This age group was also a main proponent of investment trusts, which represented more than a fifth of their total allocations, the highest investment trust exposure among ii customers.
Exchange-traded products and funds (ETP/ETF) have grown in popularity, with the average holding doubling in the past five years, according to the data. (Q1 2021 versus Q1 2026).
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When averaged across age groups, the Median ii customer allocated 9.2% to cash, 31.6% to equities, 12.4% to ETPs, 27.6% to funds and 14.9% to investment trusts, leaving 4.3% to other assets, including bonds.
Notably, while there were large variations in allocation based on age, there were far fewer between genders.
At most, portfolio construction allocations differed by 3.2% (the gap between their investment trust exposure). While 17.8% of women’s portfolios were allocated to trusts, just 13.6% of men had exposure to closed-ended vehicles.
Similarly, while female investors have tended to underperform male counterparts since the index was launched, they have trailed men’s performance by just 1.7% over the six years and three months that ii has tracked the data.
Camilia Esmund, senior manager at ii, said: “At interactive investor, the way men and women invest is far more similar than different. That has been clear in every edition of our index since it launched: when women invest, they invest well.
“Their portfolios have delivered strong growth, broadly in line with those of male customers, even during times of heightened volatility.”
Kyle Caldwell, funds and investment education editor at interactive investor, noted that when stockmarkets become more volatile, as they have recently due to conflict in the Middle East, it is understandable why people get more cautious.
“Naturally, at such times, some investors become more cautious, and we’ve seen this reflected by cash holdings creeping up to 9.2% versus 8.6% in the fourth quarter of 2025,” he said.
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“However, while cash is a useful component as part of a well-diversified portfolio, holding a high proportion can come at the cost of stunting long-term growth.
“After all, during times of stockmarket turbulence, it is worth remembering that volatility is part of the deal when investing in equities.”
As part of this shift towards defensive investments, Caldwell explained there was an uptick in interest in money market funds, such as the Royal London Short-Term Money Market fund, which was a top choice for five out of six investor age groups.
“In another sign of investors looking for more defensive investments, we’ve seen two gilts enter the top 10 across the majority of the age groups in the first quarter: T26A and TN28,” Caldwell added.
He attributed this to another gilt, T26, maturing at the end of January, with the tax-free capital gains on gilts being highly attractive, particularly for investors maximising allowances in accounts such as ISAs and SIPPs.
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“Overall, investors continue to seek out global diversification rather than focus on particular regions,” he continued. Global tracker funds were popular choices for all age groups other than 65+ year olds, alongside active strategies such as Scottish Mortgage, Alliance Witan and F&C Investment Trust, Caldwell said.
“In the case of Scottish Mortgage, the investment trust adopts an adventurous approach in seeking out disruptive growth businesses, both listed and unlisted firms, with SpaceX its top holding,” he explained.
“Alliance Witan and F&C Investment Trust are more ‘steady-Eddie’ types of portfolios that aim to outperform the wider market but give investors a smooth ride.”
