People in emerging markets and the young (18–34 years old) are more confident in their digital skills and are willing to adapt their approach to work post-pandemic.
The Covid-19 pandemic is significantly impacting personal finances globally, with 34 percent of people in Singapore already earning less, and more than half expecting the pandemic to further affect their income and/or employment, a global survey by Standard Chartered has revealed.
At the same time, 72 percent of Singaporeans are confident they have the skills needed to thrive in an increasingly digital world, and are prepared to work hard to realize opportunities post-pandemic.
Globally, 81 percent of young people said they want to manage money better, compared to 77 percent across the board, and 72 percent said they want to add a second income stream (65 percent overall), and 74 percent are looking to retrain or acquire new skills (64 percent overall), the survey said. Eighty-six percent of young respondents (79 percent overall) also said they preferred working harder to fewer hours for less pay.
Thriving in a Digital World
The survey, conducted among 12,000 respondents in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, UAE, Kenya, Pakistan, the U.K. and the U.S. – looks at consumers’ attitude towards work and their ability to earn money has been impacted by Covid-19.
«The millennials and Generation Z are clearly strong digital natives and it is not surprising that they feel confident about thriving in a digital world,» Dwaipayan Sadhu, head of Retail Banking, Standard Chartered Bank Singapore, said about the findings, noting that the bank's younger clients are adopting and adapting to digital «very naturally.»
According to the bank, there has been a «historical growth» in digital adoption since Covid-19, with the number of digital active clients under 35 years old growing five times that of our older clients.
