Nearly one in three (32 percent) of Hong Kong’s affluent individuals plan to work slightly longer than the traditional retirement age of earlier generations, extending their working lives by five to ten years, a survey found.
The research from Manulife (0945) and FT Longitude is based on a survey In April and May this year of 1,000 high-net-worth and mass-affluent individuals across 11 locations in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, including Hong Kong, of which 250 high-net-worth individuals are from Hong Kong.
Respondents were aged between 18 and over 80, and had net worths from US$3 million (HK$23.53 million) to more than US$50 million (HK$392.19 million).
Yet many of the respondents’ wealth plans remain fragmented, with only 18 percent of local respondents report having a fully integrated wealth plan that connects investments, tax, succession planning, legal structures and family governance.
Another 26 percent expect to work for as long as possible, underscoring a shift towards more fluid “portfolio lives” that blend income-generating activities, personal pursuits and family priorities, as longer and more complex lives reshape wealth planning needs and priorities.
This drives demand for a more integrated approach as financial, family and cross-border considerations grow more interconnected.
“Hong Kong’s affluent are increasingly moving beyond the idea of a single, fixed retirement. Instead, many are preparing for multi-phase lives that blend work, family responsibilities and personal aspirations, yet their wealth plans may not have evolved at the same pace,” said Wilton Kee, chief executive of Manulife Hong Kong and Macau.
