Mumbai: Only 33 per cent of Indian women take independent investment decisions as compared to 64 per cent men, according to a DSP Mutual Fund-Nielsen survey.
The survey covered 4,013 men and women in eight cities, including four metros--Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore-- and four non-metros--Indore, Kochi, Ludhiana and Guwahati.
The women who make their own investment decisions primarily did so due to encouragement by their husband (33 per cent) or parents (24 per cent). Another 13 per cent women said that they were forced to make their own investment decisions due to their husband’s death or divorce.
Only 30 per cent of women who made their own investment decisions did so because they themselves decided to.
The survey also showed that husbands (40 per cent) play a bigger role in introducing women to investing than their fathers (27 per cent). In contrast, 40 per cent men were introduced to investing by their father, followed by their colleagues (35 per cent).
The study found that men dominate when it comes to decision making while investing or buying a car or house. Women, on the other hand, have a larger role while buying gold /jewellery, day-to-day household purchases and durables.
Another key finding from the survey was that only 12 per cent women said it was 100 per cent their decision when investing in market-based instruments (stocks, equity mutual funds, etc.) versus 31 per cent men.
On the other end, 28 per cent women said it was entirely their decision when buying gold/ jewellery vs 17 per cent men.
Aditi Kothari Desai, Director and Head–Sales, Marketing and E-business, DSP Investment Managers said, “Our study highlights the pressing need for women to be educated very early about investing, to enhance their standing from just being good savers to great investors. They also need access to the right professional financial advice, which will help them become confident and take control of their destiny.”
The study found that the top goals for men and women are similar--child’s education, dream home, child’s marriage, debt-free life and a higher standard of living. Women are slightly more inclined towards child-oriented goals than men (two of their top three goals include child’s education & marriage.)
Only 42 per cent women consulted a professional financial advisor. For men, the comparable figure was 46 per cent.
Kalpen Parekh, Presi-dent, DSP Investment Managers, said, “Women as retail investors have been a largely ignored segment for the investment industry, despite the fact a large proportion of our industry workforce, including some very senior professionals and fund managers, are women.”
