Gen Z Leads Charge in Blurring Lines Between Sports Betting and Investment

A new survey by Bank of America found that Gen Z is twice as likely to consider sports betting an investment compared to other generations. The survey, conducted from March 24-31 among 2,351 people, revealed that 20% of respondents considered sports betting a type of investment, although more saw it as not an investment at all.

The report also highlighted the blurring of lines between different forms of speculation, including prediction markets, crypto assets, retail trading, and sports betting. Economist Taylor Bowley noted that these activities share common features such as community participation and real-time pricing.

The survey's findings have implications for the industry's legal position, particularly in regards to the classification of event contracts on prediction markets versus traditional sportsbooks. The report also tracked anonymized customer payments to and from betting platforms, finding that customers typically recover less than 75 cents for every dollar transferred, with Gen Z recovering more than any other generation but still falling short of breaking even.