SINGAPORE, 04 December 2019 – Digital wealth manager, Syfe, today launched its Syfe Retirement Readiness Index (SRRI), revealing a stark divide in retirement preparedness level across Singapore. Additionally, Syfe rolled out its Retirement Readiness Tool to the public, utilising the same algorithm to calculate retirement readiness.
Syfe Retirement Readiness Index is a deep dive into Singapore’s retirement readiness level. The index’s algorithm calculated the individual preparedness of 1,000 working adults aged 25 to 60, based on expectations around their retirement lifestyle and needs, current income, accumulated savings, saving rates and investments, as well as other factors such as home ownership. Each individual was then given a score, essentially eliminating a “standard benchmark” of retirement that not everyone may consider relevant for their own needs. The SRRI scored individuals across levels of retirement readiness, ranging from high (scores over 130), adequate (between 100 and 130), low (70 to 99) and very low (below 70).
The median SRRI score in Singapore is 82, indicating low levels of retirement readiness overall, with 60% of the respondents scoring below 100.
Looking deeper into the statistics, a clear divide emerged: nearly two-thirds of respondents sat on either extremes of the retirement readiness spectrum. Approximately two in five Singaporeans (39%) are significantly behind on their retirement readiness with scores below 70, while 27% have scores over 130, highlighting a very high level of preparedness.
Demographic splits also surfaced, as women outperformed men with an SRRI score of 85 compared to 81. Higher savings rates could be the likely contributing factor, as it was found that more women (56%) than men (52%) save one-fifth of their salary or more.
Interestingly, the survey found that home ownership – which has long been considered an indicator of success – negatively impacted retirement readiness. Nearly 30% of homeowners surveyed save less than 10% of their salary and correspondingly, have a critically low SSRI score of 43. While it a financial asset, a home can also be a liability until the mortgage is paid off, and will often occupy a major part of one’s financial portfolio without generating any returns.
Surprisingly, even among individuals considered high earners with an income of more than $10,000 per month, more than half (53%) still anticipate a lower standard of living after retirement. This trend is fairly consistent across all income brackets, with the majority of respondents within each income group saying that they expect not to be able to maintain their current lifestyles in retirement.
Dhruv Arora, Founder and CEO of Syfe said: “The Syfe Retirement Readiness Index is a wake-up call for everyone to start taking their retirement plans seriously. Unfortunately, misconceptions about expectations in retirement and a lack of real financial literacy has left many in a difficult position where they may not be able to reach their own goals – often without them even knowing. At Syfe, we aim to help everyone achieve their financial goals, and we are excited to roll out the Retirement Readiness Tool, which will help anyone looking to better understand how they are progressing towards their retirement.”
The full Syfe Retirement Readiness Index and the Retirement Readiness Tool are both available at: www.syfe.com/retirement/
About Syfe
Syfe is a digital wealth manager offering professionally managed portfolios to everyone which have previously only been accessible to institutional investors or high-net-worth individuals. Syfe’s proprietary algorithm, developed in-house with state of the art technology and proven investment models, build personalised ETF-based, globally-diversified portfolios for each customer and continuously monitors and adjusts each portfolio to maximise returns and manage risk.
For more information about Syfe please visit: www.syfe.com/
