Gold and fixed deposits emerge as top investment options among women: ZestMoney survey

Long-term investment goals like buying a house, kids’ future, retirement figure as top priorities for women, reveals ZestMoney survey 

• 50% surveyed women say they save between 25-50% of their monthly income. 
• Mutual funds and equities also emerge as best investment picks by women 
• 80% of respondents have set goal-oriented financial goals for 2022
• Savings, safe investments, retirement, and budgeting are among the top personal finance topics that interest women
• 46% say they prefer EMIs/Buy Now Pay Later to shop online over debit cards/UPI and credit cards 

ZestMoney, India’s largest and fastest-growing Buy Now, Pay Later platform today revealed the findings from a customer survey conducted to understand how women are taking to personal finance and investment decisions. The survey was conducted with a sample of 1900 respondents across key metros and Tier II/III cities in India, majority of whom were Gen Z and Millennials.

According to the survey, 59% of the respondents prefer to invest in gold and fixed deposits and 31% choose Mutual funds and equities as their preferred investment choice. Recurring deposits, real estate and cryptocurrency were some other go-to options. 

While many studies and surveys look at how men manage their money and investments, this exhaustive survey documents the approach women take to their personal finances. According to the survey, women not only prefer low-risk options but also invest for the long term. About 93% of the respondents in the survey were either full-time employees or self-employed. 

Around 80% of the respondents said that they have set goal-oriented investment targets for 2022, indicating increased awareness among women to take greater control of their personal finance

Long-term investment goals remained a top priority for women with buying a house (25%), securing their kids’ future (23%) and retirement savings (15%) figuring top in the list. Purchasing a car, traveling, and wedding were among the other goals. 

Commenting on the survey, Lizzie Chapman, CEO & Co-founder at ZestMoney said, “It is interesting to note the survey findings that many digitally-savvy Gen Z and Millennial women are choosing to save and invest in safe and less risky investments such as gold and FDs. They are also open to investing in mutual funds and equity indicating a larger awareness about financial products. This growing trend of women taking charge of their personal finance will pave the way for their financial independence and inclusion of women in wealth creation. We strongly believe that access to the right information on personal finance can immensely benefit women. We have doubled our efforts over the last year in creating simple, engaging content on personal finances and making it available in vernacular languages too. These are very healthy signs.” 

“Globally we are seeing a trend of the majority of women choosing BNPL over credit cards for simplicity and transparency of pricing. In India, the trend is fast catching up as an increasing number of women choose BNPL to access credit and manage their finances better. Our data indicate that we saw a 143% YoY increase in female customers on our platform last year. This is only expected to grow in the coming years.”, added Chapman. 

As per the survey, 50% of the respondents said they save between 25-50% of their monthly income. 

When asked which is their preferred mode of payment for online shopping, 46% of the female respondents choose EMI/Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) for flexibility and transparency. Credit and debit cards, cash on delivery were other popular options. 

ZestMoney said the company saw Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai emerge as the top metros with the highest number of BNPL transactions by female customers last year. Surat, Visakhapatnam, Gurgaon, Kanchipuram, and Tiruvallur figured in the top tier-II cities’ list. 

Electronics, fashion, and lifestyle were the top categories that women spend on in Tier 1 cities, whereas women in Tier 2 markets spent on EdTech courses and upskilling.

According to the survey, fashion, home decor, smartphones, and travel are the top categories from which the respondents plan to make purchases in the next 6 to 12 months.

When quizzed on their understanding of personal finance, 55% of them said they have a good understanding of personal finances. 

57% of the respondents said they get guidance on personal finance from the internet and newspapers while 26% relied on family to make investment decisions. The respondents also said they hope to learn more about savings, investment, retirement plans, and budgeting. Other topics on which they wanted more information included insurance, personal and education loans, and credit options available in the market.