Digital investing for children
How parents invest and save for their children – Study 2025
How do parents in Switzerland invest money for their children? What forms of saving and investment do they use, and what are their objectives? To answer these and other questions, we conducted a survey together with Dr. Tatiana Agnesens and Prof. Dr. Imke Keimer from the Lucerne School of Business. More than 1'000 parents of children up to 18 years of age were interviewed.
The results provide interesting insights into the investment preferences of parents for their children. Most parents start saving or investing very early on – often even before the child is born. At the same time, it is clear that traditional savings accounts continue to dominate, while investments in securities still play a secondary role.
The study not only sheds light on investment preferences, but also on the methods parents use to teach their children how to handle money, as well as their attitudes towards digital investment platforms.
The most common way of teaching children how to handle money is through pocket money. While this does teach children how to manage a budget and spend their money consciously, it does not cover a crucial aspect: knowing how to multiply their money. That is why it is so important to teach children about finance from an early age. One way to encourage this is through fun apps that cover financial topics in an age-appropriate way. True Wealth's children's portfolio, where parents can provide their children with their own login, also enables practical access to investment decisions.
Dr. Tatiana Agnesens
Lecturer in Financial Mathematics, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
Key findings
Savings accounts dominate
The survey shows that parents in Switzerland overwhelmingly favor conservative savings options when investing for their children. More than 90 percent of respondents use traditional savings accounts or gift savings accounts, while securities such as stocks or funds play a clearly subordinate role for around 20 percent. 17 percent of respondents combine both approaches. Regardless of the chosen investment strategy, however, most parents make sure that the account is in the name of their child.
Three out of four parents start before the first birthday
The survey shows that the majority of parents in Switzerland start building up assets for their children at an early stage. Almost 75 percent of respondents start either before the birth or in the first year of their child's life. This result illustrates how important it is for many parents to lay the financial foundation for their children at an early stage and at the same time teach them how to handle money responsibly. On the other hand, 7 percent of respondents stated that they had no such plans. This is usually not for financial reasons, but rather because they believe that children should be responsible for their own finances later on.
Responsible money management
Responsible money management is the top priority for parents when it comes to investing for their children. Building up their own assets at an early stage is the second priority, followed by providing a hedge against unforeseen emergencies. By contrast, there is less focus on imparting financial knowledge and practical experience, as well as protecting against inflation. Interestingly, many investment goals are closely linked to the parents' financial background. However, there are also goals that are largely independent of the parents' wealth, such as teaching children how to handle money responsibly or providing for emergencies. Some goals, such as promoting certain interests and hobbies of children, actually become less important as wealth increases, which indicates a shift in priorities in wealthier households.
True Wealth is committed to investment products for children and young people that enable parents and their children to engage with investment topics in a low-threshold way and empower them to make better financial decisions.
The latest study shows that a majority of parents prefer a solution in which the account is held directly in the child's name. This practice not only ensures a legal separation of the child's assets from the parents' assets, but also ensures that the capital actually belongs to the child. This provides an additional safeguard for anyone contributing to the portfolio.
The True Wealth ETF Portfolio for Children is based on this principle and is held in the child's name. This solution creates a transparent and trustworthy structure that everyone involved can rely on – from parents to grandparents to friends and, last but not least, the child.
About this report
The study «Digital Investing for Children» analyzes how parents manage and invest their children's assets. For this purpose, a survey was conducted among more than 1'000 parents in German- and French-speaking Switzerland between the ages of 18 and 79.
This study was conducted on behalf of True Wealth by Dr. Tatiana Agnesens and Prof. Dr. Imke Keimer of the Institute for Financial Services Zug, Lucerne School of Business.
Dr. Tatiana Agnesens
Dr. Tatiana Agnesens is a lecturer in financial mathematics at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts and an expert in digital investing. She completed her doctorate at the University of St. Gallen in Economics and Finance, specializing in Behavioral Finance.
Prof. Dr. Imke Keimer
Prof. Dr. Imke Keimer is a lecturer and co-head of the Master's program in International Financial Management at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. She completed her doctorate at the University of Bern in Management Accounting and her research focuses are in the areas of digitization in controlling and business analytics.
Innosuisse
This project was supported by an innovation voucher from Innosuisse. Innosuisse is the Swiss agency for the promotion of innovation and strengthens the competitiveness of Swiss companies with its funding offers.
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