As millennials are evolving and growing to take on additional financial commitments, there is a growing realisation among the cohort for responsible investing. As part of their preference for ongoing investment and growth, millennials are eyeing to ace financial discipline and regularity with over 47% of respondents expressing their penchant for SIP/recurring deposits as their preferred investment pattern followed by 31% of respondents who favoured goal-based savings. Although young millennials may not have much to put aside, the study indicates that they are aiming to adopt smart savings habits. Also, the cohort’s inclination towards SIP and goal-based investment plans implies their commitment to regular savings.

With millennials growing increasingly wary about money matters post-pandemic, the study indicated that a vast majority of the respondents (41%) set aside a budget of anywhere between 10-20% of their annual income as savings. The data showcased the growing trend of millennials adopting responsible financial behaviour at an early age. However in contrast it also stated that a considerable chunk of millennials (around 30%) set aside less than 10% of their annual income as savings which raises concern in regard to the cohort committing to regular savings.

The report also highlighted that millennials are rapidly evolving as ‘forward thinkers’. While boomers are either into retirement or nearing it, millennials have plenty of time to plan and save, however, there is a growing consciousness among millennials to start saving early for their post-retirement life. More than 34% of the respondents stated that they were highly conscious of the matter and have started saving already. Whereas close to 48% of the respondents said they have not yet factored in retirement planning but a considerable chunk (23%) aim to kick-start retirement planning soon.

Millennials are increasingly turning to digital alternatives and prefer to do their investments themselves. In terms of preference for new-age alternative asset classes, Digital Gold topped the charts with more than 33% of the respondents voting for it. It clearly showcased millennial inclination towards gold as a stable asset class and a profitable instrument offering long-term gains. Digital gold offers the digital native cohort the best of both worlds – owning physical gold with the benefits of new-age technology that eliminates the hassles of physical inspection and onus. This was followed by cryptocurrency (29%), fractional ownership (17%), P2P lending (12%), and US equity investment (9%).

With increasing awareness about tax saving modes and avenues, millennials are joining the clique of savvy investors who look at both future returns and present tax savings. According to the survey, more than 56% invested in tax saving plans, while the rest were found supposedly unaware.

Millennials have faced the most uncertain economic future of the generation since the onset of the pandemic. The majority of millennials have grown to become more cautious about finances amid the pandemic. According to the report, medical emergency, accounting for 36% was the top reason for millennials availing loans in 2022. This was followed by unplanned expenditure and education accounting for 19% and 14% respectively. 

The report also highlighted that banks continue to lead the stride as the most preferred go-to lending avenue among millennials. The survey highlighted that 41% of millennials secured loans from a bank whereas 35% of the borrowers opted for a digital lending platform. Owing to the relaxed eligibility criteria, bias-free processes, and attractive interest rates, lending platforms are rapidly gaining popularity among millennials.

V Raman Kumar, Founder Chairman, CASHe said, “Millennials – the first generation to be known as digital natives have made technology an integral part of their everyday life and therefore money management too is no exception. As the country’s largest workforce, millennials are driving a paradigm shift in the wealth-management industry. The cohort is seeking new-age offerings at the intersection of technology and innovation that help them pursue a custom-fit journey that suits their investment appetite and goals. The survey clearly showcases how millennials today are rapidly evolving as investors, borrowers, and wealth creators. CASHe has engaged with the Indian millennial cohort extensively and has been an integral part of their aspirational journey. With the acquisition of Sqrrl, we aim to leverage our deep understanding and expertise with the cohort to offer customized financial planning and investment strategies tailored to suit this unique cohort while empowering them to embrace a responsible wealth management journey.”

CASHe is an AI-based, credit-led, non-bank, mobile-first financial wellness platform focussed on making financial inclusion possible by serving the underserved digital cohort in India. The company is driven by its laser focus to unlock opportunities for everyday people by making financial inclusion and accessibility possible using its cutting-edge algorithms and cloud-based credit decision systems. CASHe is a first-of-its-kind origination, lending, distribution, and investing platform democratizing access to credit for millennials & Gen Z in India.

The post SIP is the most preferred investment avenue among millennials: CASHe Survey appeared first on Startagist.

The report, based on a survey of over 1,330 senior decision-makers for risk strategy, including CEOs, general counsels, chief compliance officers and chief financial officers, reveals that the vast majority (83%) of respondents in India said their organizations had been significantly impacted by fraud, corruption, illicit activity, money laundering or other serious misconduct.

In response to the high reported rates of serious misconduct, 85% of surveyed organizations in India stated they had conducted internal investigations over the past three years.

Almost 85% that had conducted an internal investigation recruited the help of external firms to assist, with the most preferred advisors being accountancy firms (72%), computer forensics/eDiscovery firms (71%) and investigation firms (66%).

Despite advancements in technology and data analytics, 82% respondents in India said the cost of investigations had increased over the past three years.

Kroll’s research also shows the extent to which organizations believe that some firms offering investigative services are failing to deliver true value. Computer forensics services were identified as being the most expensive relative to their value by 26% of respondents, followed by forensic accounting (21%) and open-source research (21%).

This suggests that some external providers are not leveraging the most up-to-date tools and technology to efficiently find relevant information—the “smoking gun” email or transaction or significant anomalies—in massive volumes of structured and unstructured data. 

Tarun Bhatia, Managing Director and Head of South Asia in Kroll’s Forensic Investigations and Intelligence practice, said:

“The incidence of fraud has been a matter of concern for organizations across the globe. Even though several organizations are implementing due diligence procedures internally to monitor fraudulent activities, the occurrence of fraud has not stopped altogether. Almost 50% of them have also stated that illicit activity, corruption and similar activities of misconduct have had a significant impact on their business. A large proportion of respondents in India (85%) have conducted investigations involving fraud, corruption or related misconduct in the past three years and we expect this trend to continue. With ongoing geo-political turbulence and potentially challenging economic conditions, organizations must become more wary of fraud risks, and will need to take both proactive and corrective measures to curb them in order to reduce their impact in the future.”

The post Heightened Fraud Risk Hits Indian Businesses Hard, Kroll Survey Reveals appeared first on Startagist.

• Over 58% of women who avail basic banking services at retail stores prefer AePS to access their accounts
• Cash continues to be the king, with more than 60% women preferring to deal in cash, followed by UPI QR and cards in that order
• Most digitally adept women customers engaged in financial transactions at retail stores fall in the age group of 21-30 years
• Cash withdrawal, bill payment and mobile recharges – top three services availed by women customers at PayNearby agent outlets
• An interesting trend is the emergence of domestic money remittance by young, working women at metros and Tier I cities
• ₹1000-2500 was the most common range of withdrawal
• Micro-savings in the range of ₹500-750 each month is the trend
• For saving goals – child education is the top priority, followed by savings for medical emergency

PayNearby, India’s leading digital payments company and largest branchless banking network, today said that more than 58% of female customers, who availed basic banking services at PayNearby’s retail outlets preferred AePS to access their bank accounts. Cash continues to dominate the payment space among women as more than 60% preferred dealing in cash, followed by UPI QR and cards in that order.

The insight was shared as part of a detailed survey titled – ‘PayNearby Women Financial Index (PWFI)’ – an annual Pan-India report showcasing financial consumption by women at retail outlets, released by PayNearby today. The annual report, in its second edition, was prepared basis a Pan-India survey conducted by the company among 3,000+ retail stores in the country, recording financial transactions of women consumers as observed in those outlets.

According to the survey, more than 75% of the retailers mentioned that women within the age group of 21-30 years were the most digitally adept, with over 50% of this age bracket owning a smartphone and accessing digital content through it. This was immediately followed by the age group 31-40 years.

Over 60% of women customers, especially in the cash withdrawal markets, fell in the age group of 31-40 years, with assisted digital access of their accounts through AePS being the most used banking service. In urban and metro centers, which were remittance driven, 20-30 year-olds contributed to nearly 25% of women consumers, showcasing the growing trend of young women getting integrated into the workforce.

While cash still remained the most preferred mode, UPI and cards also saw adoption among women consumers, with preferences ranging from 5-15% among different age groups. Prepaid cards and digital wallets also found mention as a use case for accessing digital content/e-commerce in the digitally aware, smartphone carrying customer segment.

Cash withdrawal, mobile recharges and bill payments were the top three services availed by women customers at retail touchpoints. At urban and metro centers, money remittance also saw good adoption. The transactions were primarily conducted by young working women belonging to the age bracket of 21-30 years (45%) and 31-40 years (25%).

In the withdrawal market largely driven by Tier III and rural regions, majority of the transactions conducted by women were in the age bracket of 31-40 years (65%). Approximately 78% of women in Tier III and rural markets availed cash withdrawals. Overall, ₹1000-2500 was the most preferred range of withdrawal for women across the country.

The report further stated that while more than 75% of women-operated their bank accounts themselves, they were primarily for the purpose of cash withdrawal and cash deposits. Interestingly more than 20% of the women admitted to their husbands operating their bank accounts instead of themselves.

Post pandemic era, there was a growing awareness among women to save for medical emergencies and rainy days, with more than 40% of those surveyed indicating “Bachat” as a priority for them. Formal savings instruments though, continue to see thin adoption, with less than 15% of those surveyed aware of formal savings instruments. Penetration of evolved services such as insurance (less than 5%) also continues to be low.

Commenting on the findings, Anand Kumar Bajaj, Founder, MD & CEO, PayNearby, said, “India is at the forefront of digital revolution globally. However, there is a real danger of widening the digital gap that exists today, if all segments of our society are not integrated in this journey. Whether it is our women force or the large underserved rural economy, it is important for us to measure the digital index across segments, to put in place appropriate actions wherever necessary.

It is heartening to see a growing trend of young women in the age group of 20-40 years, actively consuming digital financial services across retail stores in the country. Though the journey today is largely assisted, from here to a self-service mode will require us to work harder in creating a more empowered ecosystem around them.

This means ensuring easy availability of digital content, digital education and digital banking products that can break tech and cost barriers and be easily assimilated across all segments of the society. As our youth and women get more and more integrated into the digital way of life, it will lay down the foundation for a more evolved and empowered society.”

He further added, “As more and more women start using digital payments, it will help drive up overall account ownership. Digital assistance for everyday actions, such as paying expenses or accessing digital commerce and infotainment can save women time and resources and help improve quality of life. It is our mission to enable form factor agnostic, simple-to-use digital payment alternatives at all Kirana stores in the country, so that our masses, especially our women can soon bridge the digital divide that exists in Bharat.”

“The study showed that informal savings at home still continue to be a trend, with less than 15% of women customers showing awareness for a formal savings product. Though this number is better than last year, yet, a lot more needs to be done to bring about significant change. To inculcate the habit of formal savings in every household, we require coordinated efforts from all stakeholders, and at PayNearby our commitment towards that continues unabated,” explains Mr. Bajaj.

Further, the survey indicated that almost 35% of women visiting Kiranas and retail outlets for financial transactions used smartphones and also availed WhatsApp actively. Adoption in cities was as high as 50-60%. Rural Bharat also saw a good adoption, with double-digit adoption almost everywhere in the country. This signifies a growing adoption of digital services among women consumers visiting Kirana stores for financial transactions.

When asked about their top three saving goals, child education topped the list for women, which was followed by ‘medical emergency’, ‘home purchase’ and ‘purchase of gold’. 55% of women indicated ₹500-750 as their preferred range for monthly savings.

With just 5% of women customers aware of insurance as a service, the survey highlighted the impending need to create more awareness for the same, especially across rural and semi-urban markets. However, among the cognizant respondents, life insurance followed by health were the preferred choices.

The post 58% women prefer AePS to access their bank accounts in semi-urban and rural India: PayNearby Study appeared first on Startagist.

• 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. 

The post Gold and fixed deposits emerge as top investment options among women: ZestMoney survey appeared first on Startagist.

The days of heading to the supermarket are over as people now trade trolleys for home delivery services. New research from CashKaro.com, India’s leading cashback & coupons site, takes a closer look at the cultural shifts in the way millennials stock their kitchen cupboards after demonetization.

The online grocery industry seems to be an unintended beneficiary of the move as the customer cannot postpone essential purchases for their home. The survey indicated that more than 50% of the respondents have started buying grocery/daily items online after demonetisation and a quarter would like to start soon. BigBasket, Grofers, Godrej Nature’s Basket, ZopNow and Grocermax are voted amongst top hyperlocal sites.

BigBasket ranks top in overall service (37%), Grofers leads in packaging (34%), Grocermax has the best prices (32%), ZopNow in delivery convenience (34%) & Godrej Nature’s Basket for fresh products (38%).

The main reason consumers cite for shopping grocery/daily items online is that it allows cash-free transactions (31%) and offers better deals & discounts (25%). This is followed by the fact that online shopping gives consumers more convenience than visiting stores (24%) as well as offers the luxury of delivery time slots as per own availability (10%).

Added innovations such as subscription-based service may have a significant impact on the growth in online grocery shopping, as 44% of respondents said they would like to avail this service considering their busy schedule. 79% of total respondents said they have grocery applications installed in their mobile phones out of which 33% have more than one App. However, 15% of these App buyers said they still like to order via Desktop.

On the survey Swati Bhargava, Co-founder, CashKaro.com, said, “It’s very interesting to notice this changing consumer behaviour towards shopping grocery. The shift from superstores/local vendors to online shopping channels is certainly visible as a lot of users have started to shop for daily items online after demonetisation. The survey is also an indication that while the changing lifestyle coupled with long working hours has shifted grocery purchasing trend from offline to online format, attractive offers by grocery players are also wooing the consumers to opt for online purchases. We at CashKaro also have seen a 2X growth in the number of transactions on these sites post November 8 last year. ”

While the survey indicates a rise in willingness to shop grocery online, not all consumers are ditching the trip to the offline shops. 31% still feel concerned about the quality of online products, 26% are not sure about the return policy whereas 20% prefer to inspect products themselves before buying.

The survey also revealed that almost 61% respondents shop for groceries weekly and a majority of them spend between Rs 500 – 2,000 per month.

The survey was conducted at a pan-India level with 53% male and 47% female participants. A majority of the participants were over 35 years of age and were employed.

The post CashKaro survey: Demonetisation ‘forces’ 50% consumers to start buying groceries online appeared first on Startagist.

CashKaro.com has released results and infographic of its annual survey titled ‘E-Shopping Revelations 2016’. The survey reports the ever-evolving preferences and behaviour of online shoppers in 2016.

The survey was conducted at a pan-India level and registered more than thousand respondents.

As per this survey, Amazon.in tops in quickest and hassle-free deliveries while Flipkart ranks number one in customer care service.

Key findings of the survey:

• E-commerce portals that offer the best customer care service
  Flipkart
  Amazon.in
• E-commerce platforms that have the quickest and hassle-free delivery
  Amazon.in
  Flipkart
• Payment wallets preferred to pay bills/recharge
  Paytm
  Freecharge
  Mobikwik
• 75% of respondents feel bank card offers add value to the overall sales and discounts. Compared to 2015, we saw bank card offers play a more important role in influencing buying decisions in 2016 and the discounts were also greater
• 59% of respondents think gift cards is a better and convenient way to gift someone
• 50% users feel brand videos/ads have a positive impact on their purchasing decision
• 60% of users like receiving offers from e-commerce sites on their social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter
• 55% of respondents agree that subscription-based services like Amazon Prime, Flipkart First, Snapdeal Gold etc. enhance online shopping experience, though 20% said they would not subscribe to the same
• Compared to last year, 75% have started shopping for daily items/groceries more online now
• Desktop is still the most preferred platform to shop online with 60% of the respondents using the same. Though with increased use of smartphones, 40% of the respondents are transacting via mobile now.

On the survey, Swati Bhargava, Co-founder of CashKaro.com, said: “CashKaro survey is a reflection of how buying habits of the Indian online shopper are changing and increasing importance of softer aspects like fast delivery, prompt customer service, discounts and cashbacks. 2016 was an eventful year for Indian e-commerce.”

“The advent of subscription- based services like Amazon Prime, Flipkart First, Snapdeal Gold etc. helped in enhancing shopping experience while cashback offers became mainstream. Post demonetisation, we saw a great increase in the use of payment wallets and also witnessed an increased number of users using Cashback sites like CashKaro to save on their daily transactions,” she added.

The post CashKaro survey: Amazon No.1 in hassle-free deliveries, Flipkart in customer care service in 2016 appeared first on Startagist.