Lengthening of life expectancy, evolution of the labor market, digitization and geographical mobility: these are some of the main macrotrends that are affecting our present and, above all, will shape our future. In this context, a search of IWBank Private Investments, the UBI Banca Group bank specializing in the management of investments for individuals and families, explores the dynamics of saving and financial planning through the different generations of workers and savers, at a time when the importance and attention towards financial education is growing.
"The future is today", this is the name of the research, which explains how, with the changing trajectories of life, some of the fundamental stages such as housing emancipation, stable entry into the world of work, parenthood and reaching retirement age find new places in time and pose new challenges and opportunities. “Can I live the life I want and, more importantly, continue to do so for years to come?”, is the question that the research asks itself, to analyze and compare the intragenerational dynamics, the project priorities and the long-term attitude of savers. And, more importantly, understand their predisposition to plan. Because if it is true that new needs are arising, it is also true that this generates emerging needs for financial planning, an activity which cannot be ignored by now.
An awareness that is clearly present across the generations, but which it is not always easy to get organized towards. "The future is today" in fact demonstrates that, if on the one hand attention is widespread about the importance of savings (for 8 out of 10 interviewees) and long-term planning (6 out of 10), on the other hand it shows that planning is easy for only 3 out of 10 respondents. According to IWBank, it is also to blame for the so-called "presentism", one of the strongest behavioral biases, which makes it difficult to project oneself into a distant horizon and often leads savers to consider the future as an indistinct dimension and not always framed in a clear long-term project plan, leading them to postpone key decisions regarding their savings over time.
Indeed, the study shows how 2 out of 10 respondents associate the future with a period of less than 1 year, 6 out of 10 interviewees do not go beyond a horizon of 5 years, while only 1 out of 10 interprets this concept as a period of more than 10 years. However, if stimulated to project into the future in the light of the current socio-demographic and social security framework, savers seem to acquire greater awareness of the need to plan for their future. In fact, 7 out of 10 interviewees, if asked to reflect on the future, declare themselves convinced that "saving more and on an ongoing basis is a recipe that can guarantee oneself an adequate standard of living in the future".
The survey, carried out in collaboration with the Demia research institute, involved 1.500 Italian investors, men and women from all over the country, belonging to the Baby Boomers age group (those born between 1944 and 1964) , Generation X (those born between 1965 and 1983) and Millennials (or Generation Y, those born between 1984 and 1993), characterized by different life trajectories - different degrees of economic stability, independence from the previous generation , etc. – but united by the availability of assets to invest of at least 10.000 euros and by objectives that can be summarized in four common pillars: maintenance of living standards, family well-being, economic security and health support.
“The profound economic and social transformations that are affecting our present are destined to change our future. As research evidence shows, looking to the future to better plan and direct today's choices is important but it is by no means easy. In this sense, the role of IWBank Private Investments is once again to professionally support investors in acquiring greater awareness of the importance of long-term planning, stimulating the ability to activate virtuous savings and investment behaviors to face today, with serenity, the challenges of tomorrow”, he commented Andrea Pennacchia, general manager of IWBank Private Investments.
“The ability to project into the future is limited and discouraged by continuous changes at many levels, in a society that is described as rapidly and continuously evolving, less and less characterized by certainties. To personal reticence, even among Boomers, in thinking and describing themselves as elderly – added Andrea Pennacchia – adds the difficulty of predicting the overall and personal situation in the next 10, 20, 30 years, thus leading the respondents to a typical behavioral bias, precisely presentism, very widespread in finance”.
However, the greater awareness acquired favors the activation of virtuous behaviors which translate into a significant opening to financial advice: 6 out of 10 Italians agree "on the need to be supported by a professional who can support medium-long term planning ”, recognizing, in the figure of the financial advisor, one of the key elements to overcome presentism and project into the long term.
However, choosing the consultant to turn to is a crucially important step for the purpose of a relationship that must develop over time through the sharing of sensitive and extremely personal information. It is therefore no coincidence that the survey shows how, among the three main channels for identifying the professional to rely on, there are word of mouth and the relationship with one's bank, as well as an autonomous choice made through the internet or presentation meetings. This leads to another fundamental point, which focuses on the relationship of trust between client and consultant: for 53% of those interviewed, trust in the professional and the latter's reliability are the two most important factors that guide client loyalty. investors, much more than, for example, an element such as that linked to the cost of the service.
Finally, the progressive spread of technology in the field of financial planning is positively assessed by 8 out of 10 respondents, both because it is able to increase the client's level of autonomy and to support the consultant's work. However, it is crucial to underline how almost 2 out of 3 interviewed recognize technology as an integrative and not a substitute for human relationships, an element considered indispensable.
