Invest to advance
How multicultural families build generational wealth
Invest to advance
How multicultural investors build generational wealth
A unique journey
Many multicultural investors (MCIs) have charted successful paths to wealth. In fact, more than one million US high net worth (HNW)* investors are Black, Asian or Hispanic and Latino Americans. Yet little has been done to understand the varied experiences and priorities of this growing segment of MCIs. This report explores the wealth journeys of HNW MCIs—how they built wealth, how they manage it and what they want their wealth to help them achieve.
A message from
Melinda Hightower
Managing Director, Head of Multicultural Client Segments
Multicultural wealth overview
57%
of Black HNW investors were taught the value of owning property; nearly six in 10 currently invest in real estate.
Real estate is a family value
So is using wealth to advance Black communities. How do these goals influence the ways HNW Black investors are shaping a more equitable future?
57%
of Asian HNW investors prioritize growing their wealth with more than half their assets invested in stocks.
A focus on self-reliance
HNW Asian investors were more likely to be self-taught, using investment sites and publications to make investment decisions. How have they fared?
81%
of Hispanic and Latino HNW investors consider providing family financial support a strong part of their culture.
Future aspirations, present needs
HNW Hispanic and Latino investors prioritize day-to-day help for extended family members. How do they balance that against future financial goals?
We’re here to listen and learn
We’re here to listen and learn
When it comes to building wealth, we invite you to share your journey. What have your experiences been? What’s important to you? How well has the financial industry met your needs and what could they do better? We want to hear from you.
Key findings
While there is clear progress on the road to financial inclusion, some barriers remain. Our research found that, perhaps as a result, a sizable group of today’s HNW MCIs have built wealth outside of traditional stock and bond investing.
Terri Bullock
Capital Management Process Analyst
For the high net worth (HNW) Black investors we surveyed, real estate is a frequent path to wealth. This wealth is not just for the benefit of family—they spend, invest and donate their wealth for the betterment of their communities. At the same time, HNW Black investors expressed less interest in investing in equities, which can provide an additional path to wealth creation and inclusive growth.
Real estate is a family value
Half of Black HNW investors have been taught the value of owning property. It's a value that carries on into adulthood with nearly six in 10 investing in real estate, income properties or vacation rentals. Primarily they prefer real estate because they believe it is likely to stay ahead of inflation and hold its value.
Black institutions are a priority
Community is highly important
The investors we surveyed use their wealth to advance their communities, whether donating to institutions that support them or intentionally buying goods and services from Black-owned companies. Community support is seen as integral to shaping a more equitable future.
Equities present an opportunity
A lower preference for stocks
Portfolios of investors we surveyed are only 26% allocated to stocks, on average—below the percentage overall HNW investors allocate to equities. As a result, Black investors may be missing opportunities to fully participate in the stock market.
We’re here to listen and learn
We’re here to listen and learn
When it comes to building wealth, we invite you to share your journey. What have your experiences been? What’s important to you? How well has the financial industry met your needs and what could they do better? We want to hear from you.
Angelina Fung
Head of Asian Client Engagement
Most of the high net worth (HNW) Asian investors we surveyed were self-taught investors, primarily focused on growing their wealth. However, there may be limits to what can be achieved with this method, especially when it comes to sophisticated estate planning techniques to minimize taxes. The result? HNW Asian investors may preserve less wealth for their heirs.
Pursuing opportunities
HNW Asian investors were far more likely to identify workplace compensation as their primary source of wealth than HNW investors overall (44% vs. 24%). In this case, a cultural factor played a direct role: two-thirds (67%) of the HNW Asian investors we surveyed are first- or second-generation Americans whose families moved to the US for more lucrative work or educational opportunities.
Growth is a priority
57%
focus on growing wealth
The investors we surveyed prioritize growing their wealth over preserving it. Over half of their assets are invested in stocks. Notably, in our research, a quarter of HNW Asian investors grew up in households where money was openly discussed. So, it’s not surprising they were more likely to make decisions with the aid of financial publications and investment sites, instead of working with financial advisors.
Passing wealth on
77%
77%
Expect to leave an inheritance
56%
56%
Have an up-to-date will
Primarily self-reliant investors, what HNW Asian investors achieve on their own may be limited, especially when it comes to estate planning. Eight in 10 expect to leave an inheritance, but only four in 10 have had conversations about it. Planning and an open dialogue can help loved ones make the most of their inheritances.
We’re here to listen and learn
We’re here to listen and learn
When it comes to building wealth, we invite you to share your journey. What have your experiences been? What’s important to you? How well has the financial industry met your needs and what could they do better? We want to hear from you.
Gabriela Ramirez
Head of Hispanic and Latino Client Engagement
Caring for family and friends is a core cultural value for many high net worth (HNW) Hispanic and Latino investors throughout their wealth journeys. The vast majority we surveyed say they provide support directly or through an inheritance and note that they too benefited from such assistance. For many, balancing immediate family priorities with long-term financial opportunities is a particular challenge.
85%
say providing financial support is a strong part of their culture
A sizeable majority of the Hispanic and Latino investors surveyed currently provide multigenerational financial support to parents, adult children or other family members. They defined financial support as everything from daily expenses (e.g., transportation and food) to help with major life events.
Inheritance provides seed capital for growing wealth
Inheritance greatly improved my overall financial position
While six in 10 of all HNW investors receive an inheritance, the HNW Hispanic and Latino investors we surveyed were nearly three times as likely to cite the importance an inheritance had on their wealth creation. That capital was often used to grow savings or investments, purchase a home or set up the next generation.
Support for loved ones crosses generations and geographies
Provide financial support to extended family
In our research, a full 81% of the HNW Hispanic and Latino population provide multigenerational financial support to loved ones. Almost six in 10 investors support family members outside the US. That support ranges from help with rent and day-to-day expenses to business ventures, house down payments and education costs.
Today's priorities versus tomorrow's opportunities
Exposure to equities
Many HNW Hispanic and Latino investors prioritize helping family members with day-to-day expenses so they need more liquidity. As a result their approach to investing is more geared toward preserving capital and investing conservatively.
We’re here to listen and learn
We’re here to listen and learn
When it comes to building wealth, we invite you to share your journey. What have your experiences been? What’s important to you? How well has the financial industry met your needs and what could they do better? We want to hear from you.
Spotlight on advice
Achieving greater inclusion
Wealth managers must be eager and active leaders in fostering financial inclusion. Aided by new research that provides insights and ideas from Black, Hispanic and Latino, and Asian HNW investors, the industry can deliver on its promise of tailored guidance and solutions for all investors. Find out more.
Sandrea Brooks
Associate Director, Multicultural Investors Segment
I want my legacy to be that I was a person who helped people like me, and made them smile.
I Learned about investing when I moved to the US and had my first job. I was offered a 401(k) that you could fund with your salary and invest in mutual funds or stocks.
I want to support what my son wants to pursue while I’m still alive, and then leave him something for after.
A brief history of the multicultural investor experience
The road to achieving full participation in the American financial system has been a long one for multicultural investors. Legislative barriers, social and cultural resistance and restricted access to resources all played a role. But as they worked around those obstacles and began to participate more fully, new possibilities began to take shape. Today those possibilities herald a bold new era of wealth for an emerging generation of HNW investors.
The road to full participation in the American financial system has been a long one for many multicultural investors. Barriers, both systemic and social, have played a role. Today, legislative protections and better access to professional advice, financial solutions and capital mean MCIs face less financial exclusion than at any other period in American history.
What will it take for HNW MCIs to continue their momentum? Primarily, expanded exposure to the wealth-building potential of equities, tailored and inclusive wealth strategies, and institutions committed to working toward an equitable future for all. We look forward to a new era of wealth creation—one with inclusion firmly at its center.
Connect with us
Experts working to create an inclusive investor experience
Experts working to create an inclusive investor experience
It's time to make your hard-earned wealth work for you, and UBS is here to support you.
Melinda Hightower
Managing Director
Head, Multicultural Client Segment
Wealth Management USA
(888) 660 5750