From E-Wallet Users to Investors: How Gen Z is building financial stability through stocks

If you ask Reine, a 25-year-old sales agent from Laguna, about her priorities as a Filipino Gen Z, she will tell you one thing: financial stability.

Similarly, Jake, a Gen Z analyst from Muntinlupa, sees financial stability as a way to provide more for his family. This has meant looking for additional ways to diversify his income.

Reine and Jake are among the growing number of young Filipinos who are increasingly focused on achieving greater financial stability for themselves and families as they build their careers and plan for their future.

This growing focus on long-term financial security is one of the factors contributing to the broader rise in investing among Filipinos, including participating in the stock market.

Reine opened a stock market account last year through GStocks PH, the trading platform offered by AB Capital Securities Inc., found in GCash. She began her stock investing journey with just P1,000, with the goal of diversifying her income. Investing doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive, she shared, after learning about digital platforms.

While Jake initially started his wealth-building journey through GSave, the high-interest digital savings hub found in GCash, he eventually gave GStocks PH a try. For him, it was the simple signup that helped make the transition to GStocks PH convenient.

Digitalization has helped broaden participation in the Philippine capital markets by making market information, investor education, and trading platforms more accessible. The availability of online educational resources, the rise of content creators focused on investing, and the proliferation of digital brokerages and mobile investment platforms have lowered traditional barriers to participation.

Together with simplified onboarding requirements, these developments are helping bring more Filipinos into the formal investment ecosystem and expanding access to the stock market beyond traditional investor segments.

How Gen Z Filipinos are shaping the future of financial services

Filipino Gen Zs are taking a more deliberate approach to their financial futures, with financial stability emerging as an important priority. As they explore saving, investing, and other financial tools through digital platforms, their preferences are also becoming an important consideration for financial institutions looking to serve the next generation of customers.

A study by researchers from the Ateneo de Manila University involving more than 170 Gen Z employees found that Gen Z Filipinos are focusing their efforts on “securing their future through savings and investments.”

Meanwhile, digital platforms like GStocks PH allow younger Filipinos to start investing with incremental amounts as they build their portfolios without needing to coordinate with a separate broker.

The number of stock market accounts rose 27.3% year-on-year to 3.64 million in 2025, with 3.61 million held by retail investors, according to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). Online accounts grew 30.5% to 3.23 million, while investors aged 18 to 28 accounted for 28.2% of total PSE accounts, reflecting the growing participation of younger Filipinos.

Caption: GCash helps users become part owners of Philippine companies with GStocks PH, featuring simple signup with broker AB Capital Securities Inc., instant and free account top-ups, and access to over 280 publicly listed companies.

To get started, fully verified GCash users need to open the app, go to the Invest tab, select GStocks PH and complete the registration with broker AB Capital Securities Inc. Through GStocks PH, GCash continues to make the capital markets more inclusive by making it easier for Filipinos to learn about and participate in investing as they work toward long-term financial stability. For more information, visit www.gcash.com.