A handful of new tech companies are hoping to bring new people into the stock market

Federal Reserve data show that just 14 percent of U.S. families own stock directly, and only 52 percent have a retirement account. It’s a highly skewed group: White households are far more likely to hold stock than black or Hispanic households, while the vast majority of stock holdings belong to the wealthiest 5 percent. Economists say that these trends are reinforcing patterns of inequality, by making it less likely that certain groups will ever create new wealth. Could technology change that? Recently, a handful of new apps have begun attracting first-time investors — but economists warn that whether these new traders ever build wealth will depend on how they use the new tech.

Click the above audio player to hear the full story.