May 2025 • www. fa-mag. com

Drowning In Opportunity

The complicated business of client referrals.

HAT A DIFFERENCE A GENERATION MAKES. Whether it’ s true or not, conventional wisdom holds that the events people experience in their late teens and 20s can profoundly shape their outlook on life, the world, investing and other activities.

Fifteen years ago, the financial services industry was fretting about the cohort that came of age during the Great Recession. These youngsters had been teenagers during the so-called“ Lost Decade” from 2000 through 2009 and had seen millions of adults lose their homes and jobs. Recent college and high school graduates, meanwhile, discovered that finding employment was an almost impossible task.

When it came to investing, many recoiled at the notion of investing in equities. Pundits compared these young people to the Depression-era generation.

Fast-forward to today and one sees a generation that embraces risk. For many of them, their defining experience was the pandemic, when equities fell about 34 % for five weeks in early 2020 and then bounced back by more than 100 % during the subsequent 21 months.

This bold frame of mind was evident when our staff writers conducted this year’ s annual Young Advisors to Watch cover story. When our writers asked the advisors in the article how they and their clients were dealing with the downdraft in equities this year, some of the advisors responded by saying they had decades of time working in their favor.

Many financial professionals have worried that the Gamestop generation’ s investing experience would end in tears. So far that hasn’ t happened, but it

What is striking about this year’ s class of young advisors is the ways they entered the advisory world and the creative ways they are building their businesses.

KNOWLEDGE FOR THE SOPHISTICATED ADVISOR

Natalie Slagle, CFP, founding partner and financial planner at Fyooz Financial Planning.

Like Podiatrists Doing Eye Surgery

Local IT companies aren’ t the best cybersecurity bet.

529 Market Panic

Parents and advisors must keep their eye on the ball.

This year’ s young advisors are finding ways to stand out in an increasingly consolidating business.

does seem likely that the initial expectations of some young pandemic investors could prove challenging to sustain.

What is striking about this year’ s class of young advisors is the ways they entered the advisory world and the creative ways they are building their businesses. Some are the offspring of financial professionals. One is an advisor to other financial advisors.

As of mid-April, it remains to be seen whether the current correction in equities turns into a full-blown bear market. What is clear is that the tech sector was previously inflated by the euphoria surrounding artificial intelligence— even though it has yet to produce the tangible economic results that its enthusiasts have touted. Meanwhile, other less glamorous sectors domestically and abroad have shown every sign of making up for the ground they lost in 2023 and 2024, before higher than expected tariffs destabilized global markets.

How this plays out is anyone’ s guess, but diversification once again is starting to pay some dividends.

Evan Simonoff

Email me at esimonoff @ famagazine. com with your opinion.

8 | FINANCIAL ADVISOR MAGAZINE | MAY 2025 WWW. FA-MAG. COM