A study survey by Dalia Research for Luno on 7,000 respondents across Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia including Malaysia to analyse their behavior in terms of financial management, investment, and savings.
Around 31 percent of Malaysian millennials do not have an investment strategy while 43 percent of millennials say they do not invest at all and only 16 percent invest once every one or two years. This shows that Malaysian millennials are still more busy saving than using the money they have for investment.
Malaysian millennials are quite disciplined with their financial budget designs as 90 percent of them have set monthly budgets and 70 percent tend to follow a budget plan. However, many have little to no knowledge on how to invest their money. In fact, 54 percent claim to need more information about how to use their money for investment.
Millennials are a digital savvy generation, so creative information using mobile devices and online platforms needs to be implemented. 54 percent of them seek financial information through online applications and websites.
Interestingly, 100 percent of respondents in this same age group responded that they have a savings account and 82 percent use mobile banking frequently.
The National Strategy for Financial Literacy 2019-2023, a new comprehensive financial literacy program, launched by the Malaysian government sets out priorities and actionable plans to equip Malaysians with the knowledge to make informed financial decisions and to nurture healthy attitudes in financial management.
Malaysia’s millennial population makes up 60 percent of the working population and are seen as the main drivers of the country’s economy. Overall, this indicates that millennials are yet to learn more about the benefits of a structured investment strategy and that there is still a need for financial education.
“The main issue isn’t underbanking but underinvesting concerning Malaysian millennials. Along with the growth experienced by the millennial population, both in productivity and age, they need to start looking for ways to invest their money. Not just for the sake of getting more money, but through investing they will also be working towards financial freedom in the long run. More importantly, this helps ensure they have significant funds waiting for them once they retire, which is one of the goals for millennials,” said David Low, General Manager of Southeast Asia, Luno.
