The 100 Trillion Dollar Wealth Transfer

Yesteryear’s hippies are today’s holders of wealth and power, while their kids and grandkids wonder how the oldsters can be so out of touch. Former chairman of UBS Investment Bank and Lazard International Ken Costa argues that while boomers can’t change youngsters’ idealism, they should understand their children’s values, especially when it comes to money.

Money and Power

The graying of the baby boomers sets the stage for a generational transition. Some $84 trillion of wealth in the United States will move from older cohorts to younger ones. The rise of younger generations is about a power shift, too. By 2030, millennials will account for three-quarters of the global workforce. Across the world, many presidents and prime ministers were born in the 1980s. Boomers shaped global capitalism, but younger folks don’t love what they’re about to inherit. Young people are moving from their parents’ brand of individualism toward a collaborative, cooperative ethos.