Four in 10 Brits believe investing is only for ‘wealthy’ people

We asked a digital artist to use AI to create an image of what Brits think a stereotypical ‘investor’ would look like. It follows our research of 2,000 adults, conducted by OnePoll , which found four in 10 believe investing is only for the ‘wealthy’.  

The poll revealed the stereotypical investor is a male in his early 40s, most likely to be wearing a crisp, well fitted suit and a Rolex watch.   

Research also indicated 32% of individuals believe they would be priced out of making any meaningful money from any investments of their own. While, a quarter simply aren’t sure whether investing is affordable, with the average adult believing you would need to invest a minimum of almost £1,600 to give it a go.   

And while 32% admitted they don’t have a deep understanding of how it all works and a further 68% think investing is too complicated for them with too much unnecessary jargon involved, half (49%) would be more inclined to try investing if they were able to do so with smaller sums of money, with an average of £166 a month considered a comfortable amount. 

Stocks and stocks & shares ISAs were the most familiar methods of investing to respondents, alongside bonds and cryptocurrencies. The findings follow a study published last year, which found younger age groups have started to invest more. The FCA data identified a 6% increase among 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 year-olds and a 5% increase among 35 to 44 year-olds between 2020 and 2022.  

“Investing can be for anyone, and we believe it’s one of the best ways for people to grow their money”, said Jonathan Byrne from Virgin Money Investments. 

“It’s easy to think it’s only for the wealthy, but that’s not the case anymore – the fact that more women and younger generations are getting involved with investing is a positive sign.   

“We want to challenge the investor stereotype for good and show that investing is a great option for lots of people – you certainly don’t need a fancy suit, Rolex or home office to make your money work harder, which is why we’ve made investing straightforward, with no jargon, no waffle – just three no-nonsense options.”