Young professionals seek ‘financial coach’

Compiled off the back of a survey of 1,400 university-educated Gen Y KPMG employees between the ages of 18 and 30, the KPMG Banking on the Future report found that 95 per cent of respondents did not have an adviser, while 84 per cent did not believe they need financial advice.

However, 65 per cent said they would like to have “financial coaching” to help them make smarter investment decisions and educate them about financial markets.

“They are looking for dieticians, not gastric surgeons, to keep them on track with their goals,” said KPMG partner and report co-author Daniel Knoll.

At the same time, most of the respondents who indicated they were interested in financial coaching said they would be unlikely to pay for it upfront, meaning banks and other advice providers need to “find innovative ways” of providing these coaching services.

In addition, most did not believe they had sufficient capital to invest in the market, opting instead for high-interest savings accounts.

“The digital tools that resonated most with our focus groups were those that addressed the issue of saving rather than building wealth (ie budgeting and spend analysis),” the report stated.

“Reasons for this varied but the majority of respondents voiced the belief that they were not wealthy enough to be an investor,” it said.