The trend: Financial wellness among younger US employees trended up in the past year, according to a recently published Bank of America Workplace Benefits study. This comes despite caution about their near-term financial outlook, delayed milestones, and general pressure on their lifestyles. 

Digging into the data: In ranking their goals, Gen Z and millennial workers were most likely to prioritize savings for emergencies (46%) and travel (37%), citing each category more often than Gen Xers and baby boomers.

Younger employees have also been more proactive about retirement: Gen Zers and millennials started saving at age 26 on average, versus 33 for Gen Xers and 34 for baby boomers. This likely owes to the wide array of apps and tools launched in recent years to help with saving, investing, and getting financial advice.

Implications for banks: According to our report Financial Institutions’ Guide to Gen Zers 2026, general-purpose AI tools are banks’ latest competitors in financial guidance. With financial behaviors fragmented across fintechs and AI platforms, banks face greater pressure to differentiate beyond products and pricing. Their strongest opportunity lies in combining AI-generated insights with human expertise.

But the strategic framework for life stage-based financial advice and guidance hasn’t changed: Banks must center on meeting customer needs at a given point in time, regardless of technology.

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