APAC wealthy individuals can "talk the talk" about their ambitions, such as caring for future generations, investment and structures, but the survey suggests that in concrete terms they are not ready yet for "walking the walk."

A survey of more than 460 high net worth individuals in Asia-Pacific by Lombard Odier shows that there is a contradiction between what people say about their goals and the steps which they take to reach them. 

Only a fifth of APAC high net worth individuals (20.3 per cent) fully agree that they have structured their assets to achieve their goals. Similarly, only a fifth of respondents fully agree that they have achieved their goals, the report from the Swiss private bank said.

The study speaks to an oft-cited problem of the gap between what people say they want out of life, including their finances, and what their actions reveal.

The bank talked of a “dichotomy” between intentions and actions on the themes of achieving personal goals, sustainable investing, private assets, and aligning family goals.

“Even as APAC HNWIs have a deep understanding of their own aspirations, there is clearly a gulf between their intent and their actions. We also see the divide in perspectives between generations, and a continued emphasis on sustainable investing and emergence of private assets in managing risks when it comes to allocations,” Vincent Magnenat, Asia regional head and global head of strategic alliances, Lombard Odier, said. 

Goals
Some 76.1 per cent of respondents said that enjoying and maintaining their lifestyle is essential, while 74.8 per cent said it was essential or aspirational to improve it. More than half (56.4 per cent) of HNW individuals said it was essential to protect their family and ensure that they are well taken care of. Those under 45 are moving away from the “work is life/life is work” mentality – which could influence future investment trends, the bank said. 

Most respondents said they align assets with values – 53.2 per cent of them (all age groups) require a balance between values and profits.

APAC respondents take a conservative stance in raising allocations to digital assets – the younger generation (14.7 per cent) has invested more in this area in the past two years versus their older peers (5.9 per cent). 

On sustainability, 60.9 per cent of respondents think it is essential or aspirational to invest in this area, and 77 per cent agree or strongly agree that investing sustainably can deliver superior returns. (This is a topic that continues to fuel debate, for instance when ESG investments underperformed mainstream indices in 2020 when stocks fell.)

In the fashionable private assets space, 58.2 per cent of respondents said they wanted to hold non-listed firms, and 60.6 per cent said there is too much speculation in listed firms. However, there is a gap between realising the potential of private market investments. Fewer than a third (31.1 per cent) of HNWIs have integrated private assets into portfolios. Strikingly, only 26.3 per cent of respondents agree on how private assets could help them achieve their goals.