The Bank of Mom and Dad has a new line item: guilt

Ask U.S.

Bank’s wealth executives whether Gen Z has thrown in the towel on traditional wealth-building, and the answer is a firm no.

Ask them about the “Bank of Mom and Dad,” and the answer gets more complicated — and more emotional.

Both questions came from the floor during a briefing on U.S.

Bank’s newly released 2026 Wealth Report, addressed to Scott Ford, the bank’s president of Wealth Management; Ryan Nelson, president of Emerging Affluent Wealth Management; and Beth Lawlor, president of Private Wealth Management, who moderated the session.

Is financial nihilism real? By the time the floor opened for questions, the panel had spent the better part of an hour walking through U.S.

Bank’s 2026 Wealth Report — data showing Gen Z and Millennials starting to build wealth earlier than prior generations, leaning on the stock market over homeownership, and turning to social media and AI for financial guidance before ever sitting down with an advisor.

Two-thirds of them, the panel noted, are still starting that journey with a conventional brokerage account, not a crypto wallet.

I raised my hand and asked about the meme that’s been circulating in finance coverage all year: “ financial nihilism ” — the idea that Gen Z has quietly given up on traditional paths to wealth and is chasing more exotic, alternative assets instead, like crypto, prediction markets and meme stocks.

Is it true? The answer came back fast, an unequivocal no.

Nelson said he knows about the meme and finds it fascinating, in theory.

But in practice, he’s just “not finding that” to be true.

“By and large, I would say the answer is no.

It is still a pretty traditional path.