Financial investment tends to be a relatively static industry. When you think about what investments are you likely think of stock market charts, managing a portfolio through a broker, or perhaps a form of personal savings such as contributing to a retirement fund. These basic versions of financial investment are unlikely to change anytime soon. However, alongside them, we do appear to be on the cusp of some fairly significant changes in how people invest, and what they invest in which will make it much easier and cheaper for individual investors.
These are four changes we may well see in the next 10 years.
More App-Based Investment
Fintech Futures describes the rise of investment apps as something that’s already affecting markets, to the point that it’s affecting banking practices. These apps — Robinhood, Stash, and others — have established themselves as convenient and affordable tools with which people can invest in traditional markets. They can start portfolios with small initial investments, conduct trades with minimal fees, and generally enjoy full control over their funds.
In addition, some of these apps even provide guidance and education that can help beginners to get started. As a result of the spread of these apps, the Fintech Futures piece noted that some banks are lowering interest rates in an attempt to compete. But right now it appears that app-based investment is only becoming more popular, and will likely continue to do so.
Access to Investing Robots
The idea of an investing robot isn’t one that’s gone mainstream just yet. However, there are some markets in which such tools are actually becoming available which have interesting implications for the future of personal investment. FXCM’s article on forex robots covers the emergence of these automated trading tools specifically in the forex market and certainly gives the impression that they mark the beginning of a trend.
In the case of forex robots, traders can essentially establish criteria and parameters within which a program will operate. However, the program itself will conduct the actual trades, bringing about the kind of quick action and efficient decision-making that a human trader can’t always achieve. We expect to see more tools like this in the next 10 years, not just in forex trading but in investing more generally.
Focus on Eco-Friendly Companies
We covered ‘Eco Friendly Investments’ in another post, pointing out that there are now plenty of opportunities for interested investors to buy into green funds and companies. There are two reasons to believe that there are only going to be more such opportunities in the near future. One is that environmental efforts are increasing, and more green companies are emerging. The other is that investors are indicating an interest in investing in these same companies. Particularly among people in younger generations, various surveys have shown that there’s a clear desire to assist and do business with environmentally responsible entities. Given all of this, it seems clear that we should expect to see a greater focus on eco-friendly companies over the course of the next decade.
A Market for IoT Tech
Another area in which we expect to see more investment is the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT). The IoT is no longer a new phenomenon but it still has incredible potential for growth.
In 2018, Towards Data Science projected a $15 trillion market for IoT devices. That means there is massive growth still to come, and over the course of that growth we’re going to see more companies emerging, as well as greater investor awareness about the value of the tech. These factors should combine to make IoT tech a very busy sector for near-future investment.
Undoubtedly, there will also be other changes to investing methods and interests that we can’t foresee as easily. Still, these methods and areas of interest look to be red hot as we anticipate the decade to come.
