HSBC Study: Singapore Residents with Global Mindset are Financially Fitter
HSBC’s new study, HSBC FinFit Index, measures the financial fitness of Singapore residents based on four aspects – financial habits, financial knowledge, financial security & safety, and financial planning. The study reveals Singapore residents have a moderate financial fitness score of 66 over 100, similar to the year before.
3 in 10 Singapore residents (30%) are considered “very fit” with a score of 80 or above, almost half (48%) of those surveyed are considered “moderate” with a score of 50 to 79, while 2 in 10 (22%) are “unfit” with a score below 50. HSBC FinFit Index financial fitness score shows a strong correlation to an individual’s level of satisfaction in relation to their quality of life, well-being, and retirement confidence.
Our survey reveals that respondents with a higher FinFit score tend to be more knowledgeable about financial products, do more research before making any investment or wealth commitments, and deploy more methods to educate their children about financial management. Overall, 78% of respondents need to take care of others financially (e.g. spouse, children, parents, grandparents, siblings).
Strong correlation between having a global mindset and FinFit score
Overall, both the Fittest (79%) and Fitter (72%) groups view themselves as global citizens.
In particular, international-minded respondents1 have a higher FinFit score of 69/100 compared to those that do not plan or have any intentions to invest or fund children’s education overseas who have a FinFit score of 63/100. They tend to do more active financial planning (67%) compared to those that have no such interests (49%). Surprisingly, despite their global exposure and investment experience, respondents with an international mindset actually have a weaker sense of financial security than those without (68% vs 77%). Specially, in terms of cyber security which includes sharing of personal, credit card or banking details via social media, unfamiliar online shopping platforms or public WIFI.
Ms Alice Fok, Head of Customer, International and Marketing, HSBC Bank (Singapore) said: “We see a strong link between having an international mindset and better FinFit score. A possible reason could be having the desire to study or invest overseas forces one to remain disciplined in saving and planning their finances to meet these goals. While being disciplined about their expenses and savings is a good base to start off, people in Singapore need to make a concerted effort to do more active financial planning as it will help them be more financially resilient.”
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