Grayscale Head of Research Zach Pandl said in an article published on Sept. 28, 2026, in the firm’s The Stack column that younger U.S. investors may be structurally better positioned to hold digital assets over long periods. He wrote that Gen Z investors start investing at an average age of 19, compared with 25 for millennials, 32 for Gen X, and 35 for baby boomers. Assuming retirement at 65, that gives Gen Z a 46-year investment horizon, versus 30 years for boomers when they began, a gap of more than 50%.
Pandl argued that starting earlier does more than increase the benefit of compounding. In his view, it also expands an investor’s ability to take risk because younger people have a larger share of their wealth tied to labor income and more time to recover from volatility. He added that a longer horizon also leaves more future income available for continued saving and investing, which can increase lifetime risk capacity. Against that backdrop, he said digital assets, with returns that are both volatile and potentially asymmetric, may fit better within longer and more flexible investment horizons.
According to ChainCatcher, Grayscale Head of Research Zach Pandl published an article in the company’s The Stack column on Sept. 28, 2026, outlining how starting to invest earlier may affect long-term digital asset allocation.
Pandl wrote that among U.S. investors, Gen Z starts investing at an average age of 19, compared with 25 for millennials, 32 for Gen X, and 35 for baby boomers. Using age 65 as a retirement benchmark, Gen Z has a 46-year investment horizon, versus 30 years for baby boomers when they started, a difference of more than 50%.
He said the benefit of starting early goes beyond compounding. In his view, it also increases the ability to bear risk. Younger investors have a larger share of their wealth in labor capital, and a longer horizon gives them more time to recover from volatility. It also means more future income can still be directed into saving and investing, expanding what he described as a lifetime risk budget.
Pandl said digital asset returns are both volatile and potentially asymmetric, making them better suited to longer and more flexible time horizons. For investors who begin earlier, the cost of near-term volatility may be smaller than the opportunity cost of missing long-term upside.
He added that investors with decades to rebalance, add capital, and compound across cycles may be able to hold a higher allocation to digital assets while keeping lifetime risk in balance. Starting earlier, he said, gives investors more time to absorb volatility and may increase the role digital assets can play in a long-term portfolio.
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