Millennials
How Fintech is Digitally Disrupting the Financial World
The market for fintech, or financial technology software, was one of the hottest sectors in 2015.
The time is ripe for financial innovation: new technologies are helping end users skip past gatekeepers and intermediaries to customize their use of financial products. Meanwhile, many of the same technologies are also erasing the inefficiencies of banks and other financial institutions to cut costs in ways the industry never deemed possible. Lastly, innovations such as the blockchain are changing the way banks approach their most basic mechanisms – as a result, even the most fundamental practices in banking are evolving.
Payments, personal finance, P2P lending, insurance, digital banking, equity crowdfunding, smart contracts, and digital currencies are just some of the areas that are of interest in the fintech landscape.
Financial Innovation via Technology
There’s heavy competition in the fintech space and no shortage of moving parts. However, this infographic from DealSunny helps to put most things in perspective.
(Note: we did notice a lack of information on blockchain tech here, but otherwise it is a good introduction.)
How will incumbents in the financial realm react to the fintech revolution? That is one of the more interesting questions that is arising now.
Close to a year ago, it was clear that many financial executives were unaware of key fintech startups. However, this appears to be changing fast as fintech companies pose more of a threat.
Incumbents have two options: (1) they can compete by developing proprietary technology or working closely with fintech startups that know what they are doing, and (2) they can buy the fintech companies that are leading the race to scale.
We are already seeing companies like Visa and Mastercard diving head first into the P2P payments business. The infrastructure they are using is clearXchange, a network jointly developed by Bank of America, Capital One, JPMorgan Chase, US Bank, and Wells Fargo. As another example, the big banks are also trying to fight robo-advisors by boosting their online wealth management offerings.
However, if fintech companies end up eating the lunch of staid financial institutions – these incumbents will be forced to pay a heavy price. A robo-advisor like Wealthfront already has $2 billion of assets under management, and it won’t be long before the acquisition cost of such a company could literally break the bank.
Countries
Visualized: The Head of State of Each Country, by Age and Generation
This graphic visualizes the ages of every country’s head of state, and compares them with the median population of their respective states.

The Head of State of Each Country By Age and Generation
How many world leaders are in each generation?
This visualization by Edit Gyenge visualizes the ages of every nation’s head of state as of March 22, 2023, comparing them with the median population of the respective country. It uses data from the CIA World Factbook and Wikipedia.
Editor’s note: This visualization looks specifically at heads of state. It should be mentioned that depending on the system of government in a country, heads of state shown here may or may not have actual political power. In some countries, the head of state may be a ceremonial position that does not impact day-to-day governance.
The Oldest and Youngest Heads of State
Here is the full list of heads of state, from oldest to youngest:
Country | Head of State | Gender | Age | Generation |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cameroon | Paul Biya | Male | 90 | Silent Generation |
Palestine | Mahmoud Abbas | Male | 88 | Silent Generation |
Saudi Arabia | Salman | Male | 88 | Silent Generation |
Norway | Harald V | Male | 86 | Silent Generation |
Kuwait | Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah | Male | 86 | Silent Generation |
Iran | Ali Khamenei | Male | 84 | Silent Generation |
Denmark | Margrethe II | Female | 83 | Silent Generation |
Ireland | Michael D. Higgins | Male | 82 | Silent Generation |
Italy | Sergio Mattarella | Male | 82 | Silent Generation |
Namibia | Hage Geingob | Male | 82 | Silent Generation |
Cote d'Ivoire | Alassane Ouattara | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
Malta | George Vella | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
Equatorial Guinea | Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
Zimbabwe | Emmerson Mnangagwa | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
United States | Joe Biden | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
Nigeria | Muhammadu Buhari | Male | 81 | Silent Generation |
Dominica | Charles Savarin | Male | 80 | Silent Generation |
Congo, Republic of the | Denis Sassou Nguesso | Male | 80 | Silent Generation |
Bangladesh | Abdul Hamid | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Austria | Alexander Van der Bellen | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Ghana | Nana Akufo-Addo | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Iraq | Abdul Latif Rashid | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Uganda | Yoweri Museveni | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Nepal | Ram Chandra Paudel | Male | 79 | Silent Generation |
Liechtenstein | Hans-Adam II | Male | 78 | Silent Generation |
Brazil | Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva | Male | 78 | Silent Generation |
Laos | Thongloun Sisoulith | Male | 78 | Silent Generation |
Nicaragua | Daniel Ortega | Male | 78 | Silent Generation |
Algeria | Abdelmadjid Tebboune | Male | 78 | Silent Generation |
Eritrea | Isaias Afwerki | Male | 77 | Baby Boomers |
Sweden | Carl XVI Gustaf | Male | 77 | Baby Boomers |
Brunei | Hassanal Bolkiah | Male | 77 | Baby Boomers |
Samoa | Afioga Tuimaleali'ifano Va'aleto'a Sualauvi II | Male | 76 | Baby Boomers |
Djibouti | Ismaïl Omar Guelleh | Male | 76 | Baby Boomers |
Finland | Sauli Niinistö | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Antigua and Barbuda | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Australia | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Bahamas | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Belize | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Canada | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Grenada | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Jamaica | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
New Zealand | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Papua New Guinea | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Saint Lucia | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Solomon Islands | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Tuvalu | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
United Kingdom | Charles III | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Portugal | Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa | Male | 75 | Baby Boomers |
Barbados | Dame Sandra Mason | Female | 74 | Baby Boomers |
Sri Lanka | Ranil Wickremesinghe | Male | 74 | Baby Boomers |
Pakistan | Arif Alvi | Male | 74 | Baby Boomers |
Haiti | Ariel Henry | Male | 74 | Baby Boomers |
East Timor | José Ramos-Horta | Male | 74 | Baby Boomers |
Bahrain | Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa | Male | 73 | Baby Boomers |
Ethiopia | Sahle-Work Zewde | Female | 73 | Baby Boomers |
Myanmar | Myint Swe | Male | 72 | Baby Boomers |
Marshall Islands | David Kabua | Male | 72 | Baby Boomers |
South Sudan | Salva Kiir Mayardit | Male | 72 | Baby Boomers |
Georgia | Salome Zourabichvili | Female | 71 | Baby Boomers |
Thailand | Maha Vajiralongkorn | Male | 71 | Baby Boomers |
Tajikistan | Emomali Rahmon | Male | 71 | Baby Boomers |
Russia | Vladimir Putin | Male | 71 | Baby Boomers |
South Africa | Cyril Ramaphhosa | Male | 71 | Baby Boomers |
Panama | Laurentino Cortizo | Male | 70 | Baby Boomers |
Cambodia | Norodom Sihamoni | Male | 70 | Baby Boomers |
Kazakhstan | Kassym-Jomart Tokayev | Male | 70 | Baby Boomers |
China | Xi Jinping | Male | 70 | Baby Boomers |
Mexico | Andrés Manuel López Obrador | Male | 70 | Baby Boomers |
Yemen | Rashad al-Alimi | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Turkey | Recep Tayyip Erdoğan | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Angola | João Lourenço | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Singapore | Halimah Yacob | Female | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Belarus | Alexander Lukashenko | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Oman | Haitham bin Tariq | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Egypt | Abdel Fattah el-Sisi | Male | 69 | Baby Boomers |
Malawi | Lazarus Chakwera | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Luxembourg | Henri | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Latvia | Egils Levits | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Ecuador | Guillermo Lasso | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Lebanon | Najib Mikati | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Somalia | Hassan Sheikh Mohamud | Male | 68 | Baby Boomers |
Germany | Frank-Walter Steinmeier | Male | 67 | Baby Boomers |
Guatemala | Alejandro Giammattei | Male | 67 | Baby Boomers |
Greece | Katerina Sakellaropoulou | Female | 67 | Baby Boomers |
Mauritania | Mohamed Ould Ghazouani | Male | 67 | Baby Boomers |
Central African Republic | Faustin-Archange Touadéra | Male | 66 | Baby Boomers |
Uzbekistan | Shavkat Mirziyoyev | Male | 66 | Baby Boomers |
Philippines | Bongbong Marcos | Male | 66 | Baby Boomers |
Rwanda | Paul Kagame | Male | 66 | Baby Boomers |
Tunisia | Kaïs Saïed | Male | 65 | Baby Boomers |
Monaco | Albert II | Male | 65 | Baby Boomers |
Estonia | Alar Karis | Male | 65 | Baby Boomers |
Benin | Patrice Talon | Male | 65 | Baby Boomers |
India | Droupadi Murmu | Female | 65 | Baby Boomers |
Trinidad and Tobago | Paula-Mae Weekes | Female | 65 | Baby Boomers |
Comoros | Azali Assoumani | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Suriname | Chan Santokhi | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Gabon | Ali Bongo Ondimba | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Mozambique | Filipe Nyusi | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Seychelles | Wavel Ramkalawan | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Argentina | Alberto Fernández | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Armenia | Vahagn Khachaturyan | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Mauritius | Prithvirajsing Roopun | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Romania | Klaus Iohannis | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Tonga | Tupou VI | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
São Tomé and Príncipe | Carlos Vila Nova | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Malaysia | Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah | Male | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Honduras | Xiomara Castro | Female | 64 | Baby Boomers |
Niger | Mohamed Bazoum | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Tanzania | Samia Suluhu Hassan | Female | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Japan | Naruhito | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Cabo Verde | José Maria Neves | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Belgium | Philippe | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Colombia | Gustavo Petro | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Cuba | Miguel Díaz-Canel | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Sudan | Abdel Fattah al-Burhan | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Kiribati | Taneti Maamau | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
Israel | Isaac Herzog | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
South Korea | Yoon Suk-yeol | Male | 63 | Baby Boomers |
United Arab Emirates | Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Afghanistan | Hibatullah Akhundzada | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Costa Rica | Rodrigo Chaves Robles | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Indonesia | Joko Widodo | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Botswana | Mokgweetsi Masisi | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Czechia | Petr Pavel | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Senegal | Macky Sall | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Azerbaijan | Ilham Aliyev | Male | 62 | Baby Boomers |
Jordan | Abdullah II | Male | 61 | Baby Boomers |
Montenegro | Milo Ðukanovic | Male | 61 | Baby Boomers |
Maldives | Ibrahim Mohamed Solih | Male | 61 | Baby Boomers |
Peru | Dina Boluarte | Female | 61 | Baby Boomers |
Zambia | Hakainde Hichilema | Male | 61 | Baby Boomers |
Venezuela | Nicolás Maduro | Male | 61 | Baby Boomers |
North Macedonia | Stevo Pendarovski | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Congo, Democratic Republic of the | Félix Tshisekedi | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Bulgaria | Rumen Radev | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Lesotho | Letsie III | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Morocco | Mohammed VI | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Bolivia | Luis Arce | Male | 60 | Baby Boomers |
Micronesia | David W. Panuelo | Male | 59 | Baby Boomers |
Fiji | Ratu Wiliame Katonivere | Male | 59 | Baby Boomers |
Sierra Leone | Julius Maada Bio | Male | 59 | Baby Boomers |
Vanuatu | Nikenike Vurobaravu | Male | 59 | Baby Boomers |
Lithuania | Gitanas Nauseda | Male | 59 | Baby Boomers |
The Gambia | Adama Barrow | Male | 58 | Generation X |
Syria | Bashar al-Assad | Male | 58 | Generation X |
Togo | Faure Gnassingbé | Male | 57 | Generation X |
Liberia | George Weah | Male | 57 | Generation X |
Croatia | Zoran Milanovic | Male | 57 | Generation X |
Kenya | William Ruto | Male | 57 | Generation X |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Željka Cvijanovic | Female | 56 | Generation X |
Albania | Bajram Begaj | Male | 56 | Generation X |
Netherlands | Willem-Alexander | Male | 56 | Generation X |
Dominican Republic | Luis Abinader | Male | 56 | Generation X |
Spain | Felipe VI | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Eswatini | Mswati III | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Slovenia | Nataša Pirc Musar | Female | 55 | Generation X |
Mongolia | Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Burundi | Évariste Ndayishimiye | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Iceland | Guðni Th. Jóhannesson | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Palau | Surangel Whipps Jr. | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Kyrgyzstan | Sadyr Japarov | Male | 55 | Generation X |
Serbia | Aleksandar Vucic | Male | 53 | Generation X |
Vietnam | Võ Văn Thưởng | Male | 53 | Generation X |
Paraguay | Mario Abdo Benítez | Male | 52 | Generation X |
Switzerland | Alain Berset | Male | 51 | Generation X |
Poland | Andrzej Duda | Male | 51 | Generation X |
Moldova | Maia Sandu | Female | 51 | Generation X |
Guinea-Bissau | Umaro Sissoco Embaló | Male | 51 | Generation X |
Slovakia | Zuzana Caputová | Female | 50 | Generation X |
Uruguay | Luis Lacalle Pou | Male | 50 | Generation X |
Cyprus | Nikos Christodoulides | Male | 50 | Generation X |
Madagascar | Andry Rajoelina | Male | 49 | Generation X |
Nauru | Russ Kun | Male | 48 | Generation X |
Libya | Mohamed al-Menfi | Male | 47 | Generation X |
Hungary | Katalin Novák | Female | 46 | Generation X |
France | Emmanuel Macron | Male | 46 | Generation X |
Ukraine | Volodymyr Zelenskyy | Male | 45 | Generation X |
Bhutan | Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck | Male | 43 | Generation X |
Guinea | Mamady Doumbouya | Male | 43 | Generation X |
Guyana | Irfaan Ali | Male | 43 | Generation X |
Qatar | Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani | Male | 43 | Generation X |
El Salvador | Nayib Bukele | Male | 42 | Millennials |
Turkmenistan | Serdar Berdimuhamedow | Male | 42 | Millennials |
North Korea | Kim Jong-un | Male | 41 | Millennials |
Mali | Assimi Goïta | Male | 40 | Millennials |
Chad | Mahamat Déby | Male | 39 | Millennials |
Chile | Gabriel Boric | Male | 37 | Millennials |
Burkina Faso | Ibrahim Traoré | Male | 35 | Millennials |
Though ages vary across countries and regions, Africa has both the oldest and youngest heads of state in the world today.
Last month, Cameroon’s president Paul Biya celebrated his 90th birthday, making him the oldest head of state in the world in a country that has a median population age of just 18.5 years. The African continent is home to about one-third of the world’s silent generation heads of states.
At the other age extreme, 35-year-old Ibrahim Traoré became the youngest head of state in Burkina Faso after a coup d’etat in September 2022.
Traoré is not the only millennial head of state out there. He is joined by others including Chile’s Gabriel Boric, and North Korea’s well-known Kim Jong-un.
Baby Boomers Lead the Way
Born between 1946 and 1964, the baby boomer generation dominates the world’s state leadership roles today.
Over 58% of the world’s heads of state are in this generation, including the UK’s King Charles III who is the head of state of 15 total nations.
Boomers also make up the largest share of women leaders in the top state positions today. While only around 10% of the world’s nations have women head of states, 65% of them are in this generation.
Included in this subset are heads of state such as Peru’s president Dina Boluarte, Honduras’ president Xiomara Castro, and India’s president Droupadi Murmu.
Where Gen X Takes the Lead
According to historical trends, one might expect to see an American president from Generation X in office sometime soon, but that has not yet materialized for various reasons.
However, this generation has made their mark in other parts of the world as heads of state, especially in Europe.
The presidents of Ukraine (Volodymyr Zelenskyy), France (Emmanuel Macron), and Hungary (Katalin Novák) are in Gen X, and are also Europe’s youngest heads of state.
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