Don’t gamble on your future: Smart ways to invest while you’re young

March 15, 2026 — 5:00am

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In the US currently, amid all the other ... stuff they’ve got going on, a new form of “investing” has quickly taken root among the country’s younger cohort. Prediction markets such as Polymarket or Kalshi allow people to bet on real-world events, such as the next Federal Reserve rates decision, what film will win the Oscar for best picture (currently tipped to be One Battle After Another) or if I’ll make a great joke by the end of this newsletter (almost a sure thing).

A recent survey found nearly a third of Gen Z in the US between the ages of 18 and 29 were putting money into prediction markets. If you’re wondering how this is considered investing, it’s basically not, and thankfully the Australian government was wise enough to ban them from taking root locally, classifying them as illegal gambling.

But you can bet your bottom dollar (odds currently at 5:1) that if prediction markets were legal here, young people would be all over them, considering roughly half of them gamble anyway.

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So what are they doing instead? According to super fund MLC, crypto is still extremely popular for young investors, alongside investing in individual stocks and pursuing side hustles to generate some extra cash, with 70 per cent deeming themselves “financially confident”.

Now, as a reformed crypto fanatic, I don’t begrudge anyone from having a crack at a bit of bitcoin, but there’s not a huge amount of longevity in those sorts of investments. And yes, talking about longevity with everything going on in the world presently might feel a little weird, but you truly cannot beat the power of compound interest.

What you can do about it

So if you’re under 30, where’s the best places to be stashing your cash?

ETFs: I feel like a lot of “classic” investments get a bad rap as being a bit too boring or slow or whatever. Uhhh hello?! Have you seen the price of silver recently? What has to be arguably one of the most “classic and boring” investments is up over 150 per cent in the past year, far outperforming things like bitcoin. Investing in these sorts of assets is best done through exchange-traded funds, which can also let you invest in other emerging areas like AI, while reducing your risk levels, says Kate Haris, senior associate advisor at BlueRock. “Another draw for younger investors is the ability to choose ETFs that align with personal interests or values,” she says. “For example, some funds focus on technology companies, while others concentrate on environmental, social and governance (ESG) themes.” A well-diversified ETF portfolio earning around a 10 per cent return annually should approximately double in value every seven years, and you can take advantage of micro-investing apps to start slowly growing your portfolio. “Stay invested long enough and modest initial amounts can grow substantially,” Haris says.

Collectables: In about 2017, I sold a first edition Exodia the Forbidden One Yu-Gi-Oh card that I’d had since I was a teenager for about $400 on eBay. If I’d instead held on to it, it’d probably fetch closer to $2000 today thanks to the huge boom in popularity for collectable card games such as Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokémon or Magic: The Gathering. A lot of this has been fuelled by younger investors (and also nostalgia), and there’s no denying the significant returns some collectors can make if they’re savvy about it. Plus, there are very few investments which can also be a fun hobby. If card games aren’t your thing, you could think about other potentially appreciating investments such as vintage fashion, watches or artwork.

Superannuation: Here it is! The big one! If your goal for investing is long-term returns or saving for your retirement, you literally could not get a better option, especially given that superannuation is extremely favourably treated from a taxation perspective. “Ignoring super could mean missing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars in long-term growth,” says MLC finance expert Craig Weber. “For many young Australians, their superannuation is actually the biggest investment they have and will ever have, even bigger than their savings, ETFs or micro-investing apps will be for many years. Yet because it’s invisible day-to-day, it’s often ignored.” Spend a few minutes now to do a quick super checklist, including consolidating any multiple funds (you can check on the MyGov website), revising your investment allocation (generally the younger you are, the more you want your investments to be high-growth), and checking your fund’s performance over the past financial year. “These tips may seem simple, but the impact these simple changes can make compounds over decades,” Weber says.

Keep it in cash: Finally, if you’re keen on investing at all, Haris says there’s no shame in keeping your hard-earned in a cash savings account. “While cash savings may not feel as exciting as investing in markets, they remain an important financial foundation,” she says. “Cash savings are often used for short-term goals or to build a fund for larger investments, such as a home deposit.” Just make sure you’re getting a decent interest rate on those savings so they keep on growing.

Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making any financial decisions.

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