New research found that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the trend of millennials becoming self-directed investors, with the most favoured investments being property and shares. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) conducted a study of 1,000 people during April 2021 and revealed 43 percent of millennials in the group were investing with the intention to create wealth to become financially independent. The findings reflect the surge in new openings for CBA’s share trading accounts since the start of the pandemic. Millennials accounted for 63 percent of all new accounts, up from 52 percent. CBA Executive General Manager Commsec, Richard Burns, said low-cost investing apps on the market, like CBA’s own CommSec Pocket, made it easier for millennials and new starters to step into investing. “CommSec Pocket has gained 300,000 account openings since launching in July 2019, and almost $1 billion has been invested through the app—with 80 percent of new accounts …