Regular Savings for Expats in Asia: Why Expat Savings Should Be a Priority

We can all agree that spending cash is fun, especially if the money that you spend has been hard-earned. We take out insurance plans, familiarise ourselves with banking systems, monitor our transactions, pay attention to details, pay our bills monthly, etc. But every now and then, we can really have some fun just by spending some cash or spoiling the family.

However, we also need to agree that having a regular savings plan with a good interest rate can greatly benefit our long-term plans and important financial goals for ourselves and our family. We do not want to rely on salary credit or loans because that means paying back one lump sum of more money than we intended to later down the line, which may be an astoundingly large amount. Or, in the case of salary credit, being paid less the following month.

Take some time to read through this article and see all the benefits of a regular savings plan. If we have your interest by the end, then contact Infinity Solutions immediately to book a consultation with a trusted financial adviser and get some exclusive information and further details on the best regular savings accounts, fund management, and investment advice out there (based on your location within East Asia). We ensure quality regular savings plans so you can get a head start and start investing in your future today.

Our existing customer accounts attest to our success in securing regular savings accounts that help you reach your savings goal. It all starts with a minimum deposit and becomes a habitual regular savings plan where you can invest a certain amount on a monthly basis to secure your financial future.

Furthermore, investing in a UK-based institution means you can benefit from the financial services compensation scheme, which lowers the risk factors when you start investing substantially by simply making a disciplined regular investment contribution.

Major Financial Concerns:

Keep your goals in mind when choosing the appropriate regular savings plan. People generally have two major financial concerns, namely their children’s tertiary education and their own retirement.

There are several administrative things that you will need to get out of the way before you can actively start saving regularly. Firstly, you will need to decide on the appropriate savings account for your individual needs. In order to find the best option for you, you need to keep in mind any initial minimum deposit requirements, regular deposit requirements, and interest rates, to name a few things. If you are unsure about any of these things, you might want to consult with a financial adviser to obtain further details that will help you make the best investment decision.

There are many different savings accounts to choose from. Different banks have different interest rates and different rules associated with their savings accounts. There might also be ways that you can earn bonus interest with some banks. Yet another bank will have a fixed period during which you can save. There are also rules related to monthly contributions for some investment agencies. Our knowledgeable financial advisers will be able to guide you to find the best regular savings plan for your needs.

A minimum initial deposit refers to a bare minimum amount that must be deposited into an account in order for that savings account to be activated. It is not uncommon for savings accounts to have some sort of initial deposit requirement. The only way to really get ahead of all of these things is to consult with someone who has experience in banking and can offer sound financial advice, such as someone who works for Infinity.

Even if the bank you plan to save with does not have a minimum initial deposit requirement, it might be good to make a minimum initial deposit anyway. This will already give you some kind of balance in the account, and savings from bank interest rates can begin immediately.

Once a minimum initial deposit has been made, you can start making your normal deposit on a monthly basis. It is highly recommended that you decide on a monthly savings amount before opening your account in the first place. This will increase your sense of responsibility towards the savings plan and can be a motivating factor. It is also easier to manage your banking when the monthly savings amount is standard.

Your monthly savings amount will depend on your monthly salary. You can even set up a fixed deposit from your cheque account into your savings account. Once a regular savings plan is in place, you will know how much interest to expect, and you will be able to save money through a monthly payment.

Regular savings plan interest rates in Thailand average around 1.5% per annum, but this does not guarantee that the bank you choose will have the same interest rate, as interest rates on regular savings accounts are not universal in Asia. There are several factors other than an interest rate that should influence your final decision. Contact us at Infinity solutions to find out more about those factors.

Different financial products will have different rates associated with interest. Ideally, at some point, you will start earning compound interest on top of your overall investment amount and monthly contribution.

In some cases, savings accounts can have fairly high-interest rates. This is usually related to fixed-term savings. Fixing an amount for a period of time is a great way to earn bonus interest and guarantee that you will invest long term. Long term investments with high-risk appetites get better rates and are great for your long term goals, although they tend to fluctuate a lot over the short term and can lead to possible loss if you take a sum of money out too early.

If you want to lower your own risk in trying to time the market accurately, you can utilise the principle of dollar-cost averaging. When utilising dollar-cost averaging, you invest fewer units in a fund when the price is high and more units when the price is low.

Contact your Infinity consultant now to get help finding the best savings account options for your personal needs and make the most of market highs as well as lows.

While it is entirely possible to do quite a lot on bank loans and credit, it really is not the best option in the long run. Interest rates on bank loans and credit run high, and you end up paying much more than you initially planned to.

When you work from a savings account instead of relying on credit or a credit card, all of the interest goes straight into your pocket, not into the bank or creditor’s pocket, as is the case with bank credit or loans. Even the best credit cards can have very high-interest rates.

Where credit is a liability and can very quickly sap all of your hard-earned income, a savings account is a great way to invest in your future. Monthly savings are a lot cheaper in the long run than credit payments, even on a home loan. So maintaining a savings account and making a regular deposit into that savings account will naturally have higher returns and greater benefits for you than credit or even a cash loan or salary credit loan would.

There is an abundance of reasons why you should start saving today. Maybe you are saving with a specific purpose in mind. Maybe you just want to have something put away in case of emergencies. Whatever your reason, we can help you find a savings plan that will suit your monthly salary and your long term savings goals.

Let’s briefly discuss some specific reasons why you might be interested in a monthly savings account.

A major reason why some people open a regular savings account is that they want to save up money in order to start their own business. This is a much better option than relying solely on a personal or business loan. The investment risks are also lower when your losses come out of savings and not from a loan that needs to be paid back.

Having a savings account with a fixed term high-interest rate is a great way to save up to start your own business. This means that you have a fair bit of time to get everything ready. For example, in your business plans, you can explore different types of premises depending on your needs, you can do some market research to find out the best way to sell or advertise your products, etc. When the time comes to start the business, you should have enough funds for a solid foundation and should have a fairly extensive plan in place so that things can run as smoothly as possible.

Also, try to look at the past performance of a similar business and what they have was a buying fee for their products and shares. You will have a better idea of what you need for an investment amount.

Another reason why many people try to find the best savings accounts is to fund their retirement plans. Not all companies will cater for retirement plans, so it might become the responsibility of your personal banking plan to cater for your retirement. In this case, you will need to know what the ideal percentage is to put away from your monthly income. You will then transfer this amount from your personal banking account to your monthly savings account.

Saving for retirement plans is usually done on a very long term basis and is a solid way to invest in your future and the future of your family. Investing in securities like stocks and unit trusts/mutual funds in a disciplined way makes sense for serious investors looking for stable regular savings plans.

Mutual funds/unit trusts allow you to invest in multiple securities, like stocks, without breaking the bank. You then earn interest from various sources, which lowers your investment risk. Mutual funds essentially provide the benefits of a regular savings account as well as a checking account.

Perhaps you have something more fun in mind than retirement or business. Maybe you want to purchase a holiday home and do not want to take out a home loan to do so. A holiday home usually costs quite a lot of money and will require money available for upkeep following the initial purchase as well. So we really do suggest that you treat any savings plan for a holiday home as a long term project and that you plan far beyond the actual purchase of the property. It is a great way to invest your savings in a physical asset.

Your first savings goal for a holiday home would be saving up enough for a deposit amount. Also, remember that there will be additional bill payments associated with having a holiday home. Remember to notify your Infinity Solutions Consultant if you will be working in different currencies.

If owning another home is not really what you are aiming for, but the holiday part sounds great, then there is a savings solution for that goal as well. It really is not a good idea to go on a holiday and blow your credit card in the process. We need to be smart with holiday spending, and credit is really not the way to go. If your savings account funds your holiday, then you can rest assured that once you return from your holiday, you will not be drowning in credit repayments. The savings account would have catered for all your costs at the time of purchase, and there should not be any further costs upon your rerun. Doesn’t that sound nice?

Saving for education fees, for example, is a particularly challenging task, which can cause real hardship if not planned well. Many factors need to be considered (where people live and work, local inflation fluctuations, future relocation on-shore, to name just a few). Our expertise in this specialised area will help to fund the best possible education for our client’s children.

There’s no mystery to meeting your long term financial goals – all you need are clear objectives, access to decades of financial planning expertise, and the best regular savings products available.

Through an initial consultation, we build a picture of a client’s current situation, future prospects, and objectives. This enables us to create a bespoke savings programme. We don’t do ‘off-the-shelf’ solutions, so wherever you are in Asia, contact us for professional savings planning.

No! You are never too old to start investing in your future. There is a savings account out there that will meet your individual needs, and Infinity Solutions can help you find whatever kind of savings account you need to manage your wealth and improve your quality of life.

Most banks will require some kind of minimum balance on a savings account, but the amount is usually not standard and can be very low for savings accounts. Just remember how interest rates work. The higher the balance in your savings account, the more money you will earn back through the interest rate of your savings account.

Yes, we can! Investors can withdraw the lump sum of their invested funds in cash as soon as their investment matures. Contact your nearest branch to find out how!