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juggle running a home, a career, their children, elderly relatives, social events – the list goes on. So often, financial planning is a niggling item, eternally carried forward on a to-do list; something ‘I really have to make time for’ but that is squeezed out by other pressures and demands. There’s also what I call the fear of the unknown – people tend to have their own ideas or misconceptions that financial planning is enormously complex or only for the very wealthy and they feel intimidated. Others may want to get the ball rolling, but just don’t know where to start from.
CASHING IN Every woman should aspire to being financially independent, and particularly those who have a partner, to ensure they have options if the relationship were to fail. Money expert Elaine Bonello explains to HELEN RAINE how even financial-o-phobic females can make sure they have more than the government pension to fall back on when they retire.
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f the phrase ‘financial planning’ has you spontaneously falling asleep, you’re probably most in need of some help; being financially independent is something every woman should aspire to, and is particularly important for women with a partner, to ensure that they have options in the event that the relationship fails. Money expert Elaine Bonello is a chartered financial planner and the director of Financial Planning Services Ltd. With over 25 years of experience in the field, she demystifies the industry in Malta,
explaining how even financial-ophobic women can build up a solid contingency fund and make sure they have something more than the government pension to fall back on when they retire.
Do you feel that women have confidence in the financial services industry, and if not, how does it need to change? On the whole, women always tend to be more cautious than men and much more risk averse. People watch news bulletins and read about stock market crashes and tend to associate a high level of risk with all investments, irrespective of category. So in those cases, the lack of confidence stems from fear. However, any adviser worth his or her salt would be able to explain the different grades of risk and give an indication of the inherent volatility of the proposed investment. Then there is also the unpleasant but undeniable fact that every industry has its cowboys, or bad apples, which tarnish it. Increased regulation has helped to weed out unsavoury characters, with
“WOMEN TODAY, MORE THAN AT ANY TIME IN THE PAST, ARE DUTY RICH AND TIME POOR” What particular challenges do you think women face in financial planning? Many! Women today, more than at any time in the past, are duty rich and time poor. Most women
procedures becoming far more stringent. A concerted, ongoing, educational campaign by both the regulators and financial services providers should be intensified. Pink April 2016 ∫ 23