The Affluent Market in Australia

Overview 1
Catalyst 1
Summary 1
Methodology 2
Executive Summary 3
Most of Australia's wealthiest clients prefer to deal with well-known Australian banks 3
The vast majority of wealthy respondents consider an Australian bank to be their main financial provider 3
HISAs are very much a part of the affluent market's investment portfolio 3
Around half of wealthy respondents with a HISA have an online-only account 4
Around half of wealthy respondents have more than one credit card 4
Most wealthy clients selected their main credit card provider because they held a transaction account there or based the choice on the rewards program on offer 4
More wealthy Australians are banking on their own investment skills rather than turning to a financial planner 4
Wealthy individuals are likely to select their financial planner based on the perception of advice quality and recommendations from family and friends 5
The majority of wealthy respondents are happy with their current financial planning arrangement 5
Table of Contents 6
Table of figures 7
Table of tables 8
Financial Provider Trends 9
Most of Australia's wealthiest clients prefer to deal with well-known Australian banks 9
Wealthy Australians want a financial provider that they know and trust 9
The vast majority of wealthy respondents consider Australian banks to be their main financial provider 10
The CBA brand is highly regarded by the wealthy Australian sample 11
High Interest Savings Account Trends 15
HISAs are very much a part of the affluent market's investment portfolio 15
More than one in five wealthy Australians have multiple HISAs 15
The usual suspects hold the leading positions in the HISA market 16
Most wealthy individuals selected their HISA provider based on the interest rate or because they already held a transaction account with the bank 16
Around half of wealthy respondents with a HISA have an online-only account 18
Advisors from the bank helped wealthy individuals learn about HISAs 19
Most wealthy clients have not switched their HISA over the last year 20
As expected, most HISA switchers moved for a better interest rate on their money 21
Most wealthy clients are happy with their current HISA provider 22
Credit Card Trends 24
Wealthy individuals are heavily influenced by the rewards program of a credit card 24
Around half of wealthy respondents have more than one credit card 24
Visa branded credit cards are the most popular for wealthy Australians 25
The majority of wealthy individuals hold their main credit card with one of the big four banks 26
Most wealthy clients selected their main credit card provider because they already held a transaction account there or based their choice on the rewards program on offer 27
Most affluent card holders have a credit card that offers rewards on their purchases 28
Wealthy individuals are most likely to switch to a new card provider if they charge no fees and offer the same credit card features 29
Investment planning Trends 31
Most wealthy individuals are managing their own investments without the aid of a financial planner 31
The majority of affluent respondents plan to fund their retirement from superannuation, although HNWs are more likely to use investment property as their source of retirement income 31
More wealthy Australians are relying on their own investment skills rather than turning to a financial planner 32
Wealthy individuals are likely to select their financial planner based on the perception of advice quality and recommendations from family and friends 33
While around one in five wealthy respondents were completely happy with their planner, there were plenty of suggestions for improvement from the rest 34
The majority of wealthy respondents are happy with their current financial planning arrangement 36
APPENDIX 37
Data 37
Definitions 51
Affluent market 51
High net worth market 51
Wealthy respondents 51
Onshore 51
Methodology 52
Further reading 52
Ask the analyst 52
Datamonitor consulting 52
Disclaimer 53
List of Tables
Table 1: Financial provider trends 37
Table 2: What do you consider to be your main financial institution? 38
Table 3: From the following financial institutions please select the one you think are the strongest in the following areas 39
Table 4: From the following financial institutions please select the one you think are the strongest in the following areas 40
Table 5: How many high interest savings accounts do you have? 41
Table 6: Who do you have your main high interest savings account with? 41
Table 7: Why did you choose this provider? 42
Table 8: What type of account is your main high interest savings account? 43
Table 9: What sources of information did you use when choosing your provider of main high interest saving account? 43
Table 10: Have you switched your main high interest savings account in the last 12 months? 44
Table 11: Why did you switch your main high interest savings account provider? 44
Table 12: Why didn't you switch your main high interest savings account provider? 45
Table 13: How many credit cards do you have? 45
Table 14: What brand is your main (most commonly used) credit card? 45
Table 15: Who do you hold your main credit card with? 46
Table 16: Why did you choose your provider? 47
Table 17: What features does your main credit card have? 48
Table 18: How likely would you be to switch your main card provider for the following reasons? 48
Table 19: How are you looking to fund your retirement? 49
Table 20: Who do you have as your main financial planner? 49
Table 21: Why did you choose your financial planner? 50
Table 22: What improvements could your financial planner make regarding service? 50
Table 23: Have you switched your main financial planner in the last 12 months? 51
List of Figures
Figure 1: Most wealthy respondents would prefer to deposit their money in an Australian bank rather than a foreign provider 10
Figure 2: CBA stood out from the pack as the main financial provider for wealthy individuals 11
Figure 3: More affluent respondents perceive CBA as a secure, professional and approachable bank than any other provider in the market 13
Figure 4: HNW respondents believe CBA is the strongest overall player in the market followed by Westpac 14
Figure 5: The majority of wealthy Australian respondents have at least one HISA 15
Figure 6: CBA has emerged as the provider with the largest HISA market share 16
Figure 7: Wealthy individuals are heavily influenced by the interest rate they receive on their HISA 17
Figure 8: The online-only account is the most common product in the HISA market 18
Figure 9: Wealthy individuals turn to financial advisors and family and friends for information about HISA providers 20
Figure 10: One in 10 affluent respondents switched their main HISA in the previous 12-month period 21
Figure 11: Many of the wealthy individuals that switched their HISA provider in the last year chased a higher rate 22
Figure 12: Around one in five HNWs did not switch providers because of the inconvenience involved 23
Figure 13: It is not uncommon for wealthy individuals to have multiple credit cards 25
Figure 14: Around one in 10 wealthy individuals use an American Express branded credit card 26
Figure 15: In most cases, HNWs were more likely than affluent respondents to have a foreign bank as their main credit card provider 27
Figure 16: Having a premium branded card was ranked relatively low 28
Figure 17: A quarter of affluent respondents have a premium branded card 29
Figure 18: Wealthy clients would consider switching providers for less fees and more rewards 30
Figure 19: More HNWs are planning to fund their retirement from investment property than through superannuation 32
Figure 20: Most wealthy individuals are self-managing their investments rather than employing the services of a financial planner 33
Figure 21: HNWs are heavily influenced by family and friends when selecting a financial planner 34
Figure 22: HNWs want more face to face contact with their financial planner 35
Figure 23: Wealthy respondents do not intend to switch financial planners in the coming 12 months 36