The mass affluent trap: too rich for retail, too small for private banking

There is a specific kind of financial limbo that a lot of people fall into without realising it has a name. You have outgrown basic retail banking products but you are not quite wealthy enough for a private bank to give you meaningful attention. Meanwhile your cash sits in the bank earning a fraction of what it could be generating elsewhere, quietly eroding your future retirement lifestyle one basis point at a time.

In this episode of Money Hacks, a podcast from The Business Times, Howie Lim speaks with Stephanie Leung, chief investment officer (CIO) of StashAway, about the mass affluent segment, the real cost of holding too much idle cash and why some of the most common investing habits Singaporeans rely on may be working against them.

Why listen

• Why the mass affluent segment is one of the most underserved in wealth management Those with $2 million to $10 million to invest often sit at the bottom tier of private banking or get lost in undifferentiated retail products. Leung explains the real cost of falling into that gap.

• Why the difference between saving and investing over 30 years is genuinely staggering Leung walks through the numbers: $10,000 invested annually over 30 years grows to roughly $2 million, versus $386,000 if left in a savings account. That gap defines what retirement actually looks like.

• Why gold now belongs in a modern portfolio and the traditional 60/40 split falls short  Rising government debt, sticky inflation and a less attractive fixed income environment are reshaping what a resilient portfolio needs to include. Leung explains the thinking behind the shift.

• Why the question is not when to invest but what to invest in  Market timing is nearly impossible even for professionals. Leung makes the case for regular investing into broad-based ETFs instead.

The cost of staying in cash is higher than most people realise. This episode makes the case for doing something about it. Listen now.

Discover more episodes at bt.sg/podcasts. Got feedback? Email us at btpodcasts@sph.com.sg.

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Written and hosted by: Howie Lim (howielim@sph.com.sg)

With Stephanie Leung, chief investment officer, StashAway

Edited by: Howie Lim & Claressa Monteiro

Produced by: Howie Lim & Chai Pei Chieh

A podcast by BT Podcasts, The Business Times, SPH Media

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