Shift in trend; 62% of Indian fathers now prioritize their daughters' education and empowerment over early marriages: FinEdge Financial Goals Study

At 30, the highest priority goal for fathers is to buy a home (26%), with only 6% of them actively planning for their children's futures at this stage

Only 1 in 5 respondents prioritize their retirement over their child's education; proclivity for retirement planning is slightly more pronounced in the south zone

Only 1% of fathers in the 30-40 age bracket and 3% in the 40-50 age bracket consider planning for their children’s marriage as their top priority goal

India, June 16th, 2023: On Account of Father’s Day, FinEdge, a leading investment management company, has conducted a study to gain valuable insights into the financial goals and investing patterns of fathers across the country at different stages of life. This comprehensive study, based on data collected from ~17,000 clients across 1,600 locations with 29,021 financial goals, provides valuable insights into how fathers in India are approaching their financial goal planning today. Interestingly, the study reveals that 62% of fathers accord the highest priority to their children's higher studies, whereas only 1%-3% of fathers below the age of 40 now consider their child’s marriage as their primary goal.

Commenting on the results, Harsh Gahlaut, CEO & Co-Founder, said “The results of the study provide in-depth insights about financial goals and investing patterns of fathers across the country at different life stages. It is very encouraging to witness paradigm shifts on how new fathers are now prioritizing their children’s education – or their own retirement - instead of their children’s marriages. Also, it reflects that deep-rooted societal changes are now underway, with more young people exercising their freedom of choice with respect to previously ‘automatic’ life choices such as getting married at a certain age or having kids”

The results shed light on the importance of goal-based investing. Here are some significant findings from the study:

Insight #1: Planning for Children's Higher Studies Gains Urgency after the Age of 40

The study findings indicate that for fathers below the age of 30, the highest priority goal is to buy a home (26%), with only 6% of them actively planning for their children's futures

1 in 5 young fathers prioritize "wealth creation" as their top goal, suggesting a more speculative mindset and a lack of purpose-based investing before the age of 30

Planning for children's higher studies becomes the top priority for 45% of fathers in the 30-40 age bracket and 62% for fathers in the 40-50 age bracket.

Insight #2: Marriage Goal Planning Takes a Backseat

Only 1% of fathers in the 30-40 age bracket and 3% in the 40-50 age bracket consider their children’s marriage as their primary goal.

However, this percentage rises significantly to 21% for fathers above the age of 50.

The study indicates a shifting trend, with more fathers in India prioritizing their daughters' education and empowerment over early marriages.

Insight #3: Retirement Planning Gains Importance, with Younger Fathers Leading the Way

Retirement Planning is increasingly becoming a top priority goal for fathers, irrespective of their age bracket or life stage.

Counterintuitively, the percentage of fathers below 30 years old prioritizing their retirement over other goals (26%) was actually found to be higher than those in the 30-40 age bracket (22%)!

Insight #4: Minimal Regional Bias in Prioritizing Child's Future

Location does not seem to influence this goal significantly. 60% of fathers from the north and east regions named planning for their child’s education as their top priority goal, compared to 57% from the west and south

24% of respondents from the south zone prioritized their retirement over their child's education compared to 21% from other regions, indicating a marginally higher awareness about the importance of retirement planning in this demographic

“Needless to say, fathers play a critical role in setting up a robust financial future for their families. At FinEdge, we strongly believe that investing with clear financial goals in mind makes all the difference when it comes to managing behavioural traps and creating long term wealth. We encourage all fathers to start investing with purpose instead of making ad hoc investments, in order to secure a fantastic financial future for their families.” said Gahlaut in conclusion

Survey Methodology

The survey was conducted by FinEdge in the month of June this year. The sample is comprised of fathers from the age bracket of 23 years to 68 years with several financial goals. The sample size of the survey is 17,000 clients having 29,021 financial goals. The study includes clients from across the region ranging 11% from the East, 27% from the North, 20% from the South, and 42% from the West.

About FinEdge

FinEdge came into existence in the year 2011 with an aim to solve the core problem of the “investment gap” in India. It is a tech-enabled wealth management and goal planning platform. The platform is the first in the country to deploy goal based investing as a BIONIC business model. FinEdge ensures that they reach demographics and geographies, provide a convenient, low-cost – high-quality, process-driven, goal-oriented, wealth creation platform to their clients. By Keeping their objective of ‘Investing with Purpose’ at the center of their strategies, they have created a vast network of clients across 76 countries and 1600 cities.