Young Aussies are getting paid by companies they’ve never worked for

30 September 2026
Personal finance

• $16 billion in dividends will be paid by Australian companies in the final week of September
• More than 70 per cent of these payments land in the final week of September
• Almost half of all new investors on nabtrade are now aged under 30.

The biggest dividend pay week of the year has arrived, with thousands of young Australians set to receive payments from companies they’ve never worked for.

NAB estimates more than $16 billion in dividends will be paid by Australian companies in the final week of September alone, with nearly two in three Gen Z investors expected to receive a dividend this month.

More than 70 per cent of Gen Z investors’ September dividend payments typically land in the final week of the month, putting young investors right in the middle of the biggest dividend payday of the year.

NAB Private Wealth Executive Adrian Hanley said the bumper week was putting a spotlight on the role investment income can play in building wealth.

Interest in investment income is also growing, with searches for “dividend information” on nabtrade increasing 200 per cent since the May Budget.

“We’re seeing growing interest in income-producing investments as investors look at different ways to make their money work harder,” Mr Hanley said.

This comes as Gen Z becomes the fastest growing generation of investors on nabtrade. Account openings among the group have jumped 41 per cent over the past three years, while almost half of all new investors are now aged under 30.

For 26 year old investor Milla Bath, the journey began with lessons from her father, an accountant and long time investor, who taught her from an early age about saving and making her money work harder.