How people relate to money is influenced not only by their generation but also by family rules, crises experienced in childhood and the technological environment in which they grew up. Generational researcher Steigervald Krisztián told the Portfolio Business podcast that financial habits can be passed down for up to a hundred years, while cash usage has declined and trust in banks has shifted in just a few decades.
Family rules and economic context
Every family has explicit or implicit rules about money: in some households taking on debt is forbidden, in others incoming money is spent immediately, and elsewhere saving is seen as the basis of security. According to Steigervald, these patterns are always applied within the relevant economic context, so two people from the same generation can behave very differently financially. Advice that was rational for an earlier generation may no longer be a good decision decades later.
As an example, a blanket rejection of credit may make sense in a family that previously suffered major losses, while under other circumstances a favourable mortgage would be judged differently.
From cash to digital pocket money
Baby boomers’ attitudes toward money were shaped by postwar scarcity and planned economies, so cash, thrift and owning property can be more tightly linked to security for them. Generation X collected savings stamps as children and later encountered market economies, consumer credit and the foreign-currency loan crisis. Generation Y was strongly influenced by the 2008 financial crisis, while for Generation Z money is often just a number on a phone screen.
The retreat of cash has psychological effects. The so-called pain of paying — the sensation of handing over banknotes and feeling wealth decline — has weakened with card and mobile payments. With automatic subscriptions money can disappear without a conscious decision, meaning young people often do not experience how their pocket money or other funds are spent. That can make spending easier, even as many families still avoid open conversations about money.
Homeownership versus freedom
One major point of intergenerational tension concerns buying property. Older people may view owning a home as the primary form of security, while a young person can see decades-long commitment and loss of mobility in the same step. Milestones of financial adulthood have also shifted: a 23-year-old can live independently while receiving parental support, and a 28-year-old can have income and investments while still living at home. Steigervald argues that financial maturity should be tied to capabilities — whether someone can take responsibility for their spending and plan for their future self — rather than to age.
Trust: the neighbourhood clerk or an algorithm?
Steigervald sees the deepest generational divide in questions of trust. For older generations a solid bank building and a familiar clerk can signal security, while younger people may trust an app, a digital provider or artificial intelligence. That does not automatically mean younger generations are more financially literate: digital confidence and financial knowledge are distinct skills.
The next major shift may come from AI-based financial assistants. These tools can monitor income and expenses continuously, warn about overspending, offer suggestions and, in extreme cases, even block certain purchases. If families and financial institutions do not find good ways to talk about money, upcoming generations may increasingly turn to artificial intelligence for advice.
Where to hear the conversation
The episode of the Portfolio Business podcast that covers these topics is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.
Cover photo credit: Portfolio
