Working women prefer FDs to stocks: DBS Survey

Delhi, January 15, 2024: As many as 47% women earners in urban India take their own financial decisions, while 98% actively participate in long-term family decisions, reveals a recent survey conducted by DBS Bank India in collaboration with CRISIL. The independence in making financial choices increases significantly with age, with 65% women above 45 years of age taking their own decisions, compared to 41% in the 25-35 age group, and 49% in the 36-45 year category.

When it comes to investments, working women tend to be risk-averse, with nearly 51% of their investments in fixed deposits and savings account, followed by 16% in gold, 15% in mutual funds, 10% in real estate and only 7% in stocks. They are, however, in step with the broader transformation to a cashless economy. Only 14% prefer cash transactions across India, but Kolkata remains an outlier with 43% using cash.

As many as 54% of salaried women and 49% of self-employed women save more than 30% of their income. Almost half of both these categories allocate more than 30% of their income to investments.

As for financial goals, women prioritise three main objectives: children’s education, buying a house and wealth accumulation. This varies with age and marital status. For women in the 25-35 year age group, buying a home is top priority, while for 36-45 year women, it changes to children’s education. For those over 45 years, medical care is the top priority. While 32% of married women prioritise children’s education and healthcare, 24% of single women focus on personal goals of planning for wedding and vacations.

They prefer both private and public sector banks, but 95% in Kolkata prefer public sector banks. More than 90% affluent class women are credit card users, with Hyderabad and Mumbai showing much higher credit card usage compared to the Indian average of 82%.

The survey was conducted in 10 major Indian cities among 800 salaried and self-employed women to know their financial habits and preferences. This is the first of a three-part study that looks into women’s financial decision making, saving and investing, goal setting, banking choices and digital footprint.