Retail investors are increasingly turning to digital platforms, according to a report by Benori Knowledge.

Benori Knowledge surveyed over 1,000 digital investors to better understand usage patterns, preferences and trading activities on online investment platforms.

According to the report, more than 81% of digital investors started their investment journey in the last three years.

Driven by technological advancements, consumer awareness, diverse offerings from investment tech startups, and government support, the digital investment market is expected to reach $14.3 billion by 2025, growing from 6.4 billion in 2021 at a 5-year CAGR of 22.4%, the report says.

“Investors flock to digital platforms because they find them convenient to use and they give them a wider range of options,” he said.

According to the Benori study, many members of younger generations begin their wealth management journey through digital platforms, with 93% of users belonging to the millennial segment.

“The younger clientele that these platforms are attracting is also increasingly diverse,” he said.

The presence of women in the investment community on these platforms is also on the rise, with women accounting for nearly 40% of digital investment platform users.

“However, in terms of geographic dispersion, investment space remains concentrated in highly urbanized areas,” he said.

More than 60% of users came from Tier 1 cities.

Additionally, according to the survey, 72% of respondents said that accumulating higher earnings is their primary goal of investing in digital.

While 42% invest in order to achieve their financial goals, including building up savings for retirement (51%) and reducing taxable income (25%).

Mutual funds have become the most popular option for online investors, accounting for 62% of their trading activity. Investor interest in stock trading is also growing, with half of users (51%) participating in public markets.

Despite the rise of digital investment solutions, investor outreach is mostly driven offline, with 36% of users consulting friends and family and 17% turning to a financial advisor, according to the report.

Investors also respond on digital channels such as financial websites and social media (32%) for information related to investments. 14% rely on traditional media (newspapers, television and radio).

“Digital investment spaces are expected to continue to retain and grow their number of users, boasting a high satisfaction rate of 87%,” according to the survey.

“What drives satisfaction with these platforms are the perceived superior returns they offer, accounting for 53% of user satisfaction,” he added.

Investors are also satisfied with their ease of use and operation (68%) and the convenient KYC process (59%).

When considering the benefits of investing online over the traditional method, users highlighted convenience (72%), access to a wider range of products (55%) and lower brokerage fees (47%). ).

However, there are also some limitations to digital investment platforms.

“It is not yet known how they perform in terms of data security,” according to the report.

Those who were only moderately satisfied (9%) with their platforms highlighted privacy issues (60%), lack of relevant information (58%) and unreliability (41%) as concerns.

Ashish Gupta, Co-Founder and CEO of Benori, said, “The digital investment landscape has continually evolved with advances in technology to provide clients with simple yet sophisticated investment processes that offer a variety of options. of investment.

“These new wealth management platforms are more appealing to millennials, who are now increasingly participating in capital markets. With an increase in the number of young investors leveraging digital avenues to grow their wealth, financial institutions will need to come up with more user-friendly technologies to encourage digital investing,” Gupta added.

Published on

May 21, 2022