Which Investment Products Are the Most Popular?

Globally, the most widely used investment products include stocks, bonds, real estate, insurances with an investment element (e.g., life insurance) and precious metals (gold, silver, etc.). Cryptocurrencies have also been gaining traction in recent years, particularly among younger investors and in emerging economies.

According to the most recent Statista Consumer Insights survey conducted in six countries across the globe, equity investments, such as stocks or mutual and exchange-traded funds, are still dominant. Indeed, they are the most popular form of investment in India (39 percent of respondents said they currently own/use it), China (36 percent), Germany (23 percent) and the United States (17 percent). There are also among the leading ones in Brazil and the United Kingdom (between 17 and 23 percent). Additionally, insurance-based investment products and real estate are among the most popular choices of the respondents in the six countries surveyed, at between 17 and 39 percent. In the UK, land and buildings investment is even coming first, at 23 percent.

As shown by our chart, in the BRICS countries, physical gold or cryptocurrencies tend to be more popular than in G7 countries due to distrust of local currencies and/or cultural traditions. For example, in India and China, two major gold consumers, precious metals are used as investment products by between 26 and 33 percent of the respondents, while cryptocurrencies seem particularly popular in Brazil (26 percent). It is important to note that these results come from an online survey. Thus, the high percentages generally obtained in emerging economies are likely to reflect the investment habits of the urban middle to upper-class populations (more inclined to invest) rather than those of the general population.