Have the yuppies of yesteryear grown up to become richer and wiser?

Older, yes; richer, maybe; and wiser?

With a sequel to the 1987 hit movie Wall Street soon coming to our screens, it seems that the 'Greed is good' mantra espoused by ruthless stockbroker Gordon Gekko still resonates with the former 1980s young urban professionals.

Money is more important than ever to some of the UK's 12 million 50-65 year-olds, many of whom were the twenty and thirty-something high flyers of the 1980s, according to a report from RIAS, an insurance provider for the over 50s.

Just under a third (29%) admit that money matters to them even more today than it did three decades ago, and one sixth (16%) see making more money as their key financial priority for the next ten years.

While the Yuppies of the 80s were known for their love of making money, this was also a famously technology savvy and socially well-connected generation. It seems that this trait has grown up with them - one in five 50-65 year olds (21%) say that they still keep up with the latest gadgets, with four out of ten (39%) more interested in the latest gizmos than ever before.

But they have swapped the supersize brick-like mobile phone, fax machine and sushi maker for blackberries, ipods, laptops and vacuum cleaners.

Two thirds own a laptop, and 58% claim this is the one gadget they just can't live without. Somewhat bizarrely, vacuum cleaners come a close second (46%) as a 'must have' gadget. Over a quarter (28%) own iPods and just under half (46%) have a Sat Nav device.

One of the trademarks of a yuppie was a bulging filofax, a testament to their preoccupation with being busy and connected. Today many former yuppies have swapped traditional schmoozing and a champagne lifestyle for social networking, with over two in five (42%) of those online now on Twitter or Facebook.

While they retain their yuppie mentality over gadgets and networking, the yuppies of yesteryear have become more prudent with their hard earned cash - trading 'Spend! Spend! Spend!' for financial security. When asked about financial priorities for the next ten years, almost a quarter (23%) said preparing for their retirement and almost a fifth (18%) plan to pay off a mortgage or debt. One in ten (11%) are prioritising saving more generally.

There is still a hardcore contingent of 16% who are prioritising earning more money in the next 10 years, despite being past the perceived 'peak' of their lifetime earning potential, generally regarded as the mid-40s.

The yuppies of the mid-80s were known for their pursuit of six figure salaries and long working hours. Over two fifths (44%) of 50-65 year olds admit that their career was everything to them 30 years ago, with more than one in ten (12%) of them still maintaining that they are as career driven as ever.

Today, whilst over a third (36%) are retired or semi-retired, one fifth (17%) are still achieving in a highly pressurised work environment, and 7% feel they are at the pinnacle of their career.

The overwhelming majority (77%) lived in cities or the suburbs 30 years ago, but now only 56% live in urban areas – a quarter have chosen to live in the big house in the country.