Malaysians are generally cautious when it comes to investing their money, opting to keep their money in "safer" mediums such as savings account rather than "riskier" mediums such as stocks or other investment vehicles, according to the results of Aviva's Consumers Attitudes to Savings 2008.
Malaysians are generally cautious when it comes to investing their money, opting to keep their money in "safer" mediums such as savings account rather than "riskier" mediums such as stocks or other investment vehicles, according to the results of Aviva's Consumers Attitudes to Savings 2008.
94% of the 1,000 respondents surveyed in Malaysia has a savings account, 35% has life insurance with savings element whereas 23% has unit trust. However, the high number of accounts does not translate into having enough savings as more than half of them indicated that they are ill-prepared to cope with the unexpected, reflecting a worrying trend in Malaysians' financial preparedness.
Even though 63% of people polled realized that saving and investing regularly are key to a comfortable retirement only a mere 14% are confident they will have enough funds to retire.
A significant 64% expressed concern that they won't have enough money when they retire. Instead of taking steps to invest regularly, the majority see extending their working life as a better solution to be more financially secure. 53% of them even acknowledged that they might have to work beyond their retirement date to ensure an adequate lifestyle when they really have to retire.
Aviva's Consumers Attitudes to Savings 2008 studied Malaysians attitude to savings. "The survey clearly reveals the gap between acknowledging the need for saving vs the action of actually saving. Malaysians choose to continue working full time and part time to fund their much-deserved retirement instead of shifting their mindset to investing their income into other mediums that could potentially provide higher returns," said Andi McLennan, marketing director of CIMB Aviva Malaysia.
"Hence, continuous education and awareness about ways to benefit from financial growth whilst benefiting from the certainty of capital and life protection are critical for the Malaysian market," Andi continues.
To support that, CIMB Aviva recently rolled out via CIMB Islamic Market Select, a Shariah-compliant capital-protected fund that invests in 17 countries from developed and emerging markets around the globe. These countries include developed nations such as US, Europe and Japan and emerging economies like China, India, Malaysia, Russia, Brazil and Vietnam.
CIMB Islamic Market Select investors also benefit from takaful coverage, which pays surviving nominees a maximum of 125% of their single investment if they pass away before the investment matures.
With CIMB Islamic Market Select, investors can gain access to a diversified portfolio of global investments from as little as RM25,000 and can be assured that their capital is intact when the product matures. When applied to historical data, CIMB Islamic Market Select's dynamic investment allocation strategy gives average annual returns of 16.5% and 23.6% for its three-year and five-year plan which means potentially higher returns than a conventional fixed deposit account.
CIMB Islamic Market Select is available at all CIMB Islamic branches, which are co-located at CIMB Bank's 366 branches nationwide until 19 September 2008. For further information, investors can call 1 300 880 900 or visit www.cimbbank.com.my.
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Enquiries:
Andi McLennan
Director of Marketing
CIMB Aviva Assurance Berhad
Telephone: 03-03-2612 3724
E-mail: andi@cimbaviva.com
Tricia Loh
Head of Brand & PR
CIMB Aviva Assurance Berhad
Telephone: 03-2614 3599
E-mail: tricia@cimbaviva.com
Notes to editors:
Which countries does CIMB Islamic Market Select invest within?
| Developed Markets | US, Europe and Japan |
| Asian Emerging Markets | China, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand |
| Next Emerging Markets | Russia, Kazakhastan, South Africa, Brazil, Egypt, Turkey, Mexico and Vietnam |
Who is CIMB Aviva?
CIMB Aviva is a joint venture between CIMB Group and Aviva plc. CIMB Group is Malaysia's second largest financial services provider and one of Southeast Asia's leading universal banking groups, and Aviva is the world's fifth largest insurance group* and the largest insurance services provider in UK.
CIMB Aviva offers a comprehensive range of life insurance and Takaful products and services available at CIMB Bank and CIMB Islamic which operate on a dual banking platform in 367 branches in Malaysia.
CIMB Aviva also rides on the global expertise of Aviva, which services 45 million customers in 27 countries around the world. Aviva recorded total sales of £49.2 billion (RM337.5 billion) at 31 December 2007 and funds under management of £359 billion (RM2.28 trillion) at 30 June 2008.
*based on gross worldwide premiums
Average exchange rate 1£ = RM6.86 (2007), RM6.34 (6-month 2008)