That is the finding of a representative survey commissioned by Lucerne-based pension and investment provider finpension from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. Market research firm Demoscope polled 1,016 people aged 18 to 79 in German- and French-speaking Switzerland in February.

On a scale of one to five, bank advisors score 3.7 points across all investors. Friends and family follow closely at 3.5, with independent financial advisors at 3.3.

Trailing far behind are AI at 2.1 and so-called finfluencers at 1.9.

A Dead Heat Among the Young

The averages mask stark generational differences. Among baby boomers, bank advisors rate 1.2 points above the mean of all ratings, while AI and finfluencers sit 1.0 and 1.2 points below it, respectively.

Among Gen Z, little of that gap remains. The bank advisor lands exactly on the mean, with AI a mere 0.1 points below.

Young investors place considerably more trust in friends and family. Finfluencers fare poorly with them, too.

Trust in sources for investment decisions, deviation from the mean by age group (Chart: finpension)

A Wake-Up Call for the Industry

«Among younger generations, this lead over other sources of information is significantly smaller than among older ones. That is a signal the industry should take seriously,» says Beat Buehlmann, founder and chairman of finpension.

According to the study, those who trust AI and finfluencers also tend to be more skeptical of bank advisors.

A Niche of 200,000 Followers

Overall, finfluencers play only a minor role. Some 75 percent of investors have never turned to them for financial information, while 6 percent do so regularly.

Extrapolated, that amounts to around 200,000 people in Switzerland, according to finpension.

The picture is different among the young. Some 61 percent of Gen Z investors have consulted finfluencers at least once, and 16 percent do so daily or several times a week.

The corresponding figure is 13 percent for Generation X and 8 percent for baby boomers.

AI has also made its way into everyday life. Some 60 percent of the population use such tools, and 26 percent of those also turn to them for financial or investment questions.

Gen Z turns to finfluencers far more often (Chart: finpension, source: Demoscope)

Women Seek Advice

Most investors make their own calls anyway. Some 53 percent decide on their investments on their own or together with their partner.

A further 35 percent consult a professional advisor, while 12 percent delegate their investment decisions to a bank or asset manager.

The gender gap is pronounced. Some 44 percent of women decide with the help of an advisor, compared with 28 percent of men.

Men, by contrast, decide on their own in 59 percent of cases, women in 44 percent.

Women are considerably more advice-oriented when investing (Chart: finpension, source: Demoscope)