23rd April 2025 - 2 min read
Putting aside money for savings can be a difficult thing for many Malaysians to do. After all, according to the 2024 RinggitPlus Malaysian Financial Literacy Survey (RMFLS), only 33% of Malaysians are saving more than RM500 every month.
On top of that, just 39% of respondents stated they could survive for four months or more in the event of income loss.
RinggitPlus CEO Yuen Tuck Siew and The Futurizts discussed these findings (and more) on a podcast. From the results of RMFLS 2024 to the current financial climate, the podcast also deliberated on how Malaysians can better prepare for financial uncertainties.
One of the strategies discussed is the deliberate decision to actually establish a savings fund as a safeguard against emergencies. Surprisingly enough, the ability to save more money is not necessarily correlated with how much a person earns. As RMFLS 2024 showed, 48% of respondents who earn more than RM10,000 a month are still living paycheck to paycheck.
As Siew puts it, one of the reasons why this particular finding was highlighted in the RMFLS 2024 report is to show that higher income does not necessarily mean better preparedness. “As you earn more, it’s very hard to avoid lifestyle inflation,” he added.
If you’d like to learn more about other financial analyses and tips shared by Siew, watch the full podcast on The Futurizts’ YouTube channel.
Andrew writes about personal finance and consumer behaviour, drawing on over a decade in digital media and editorial across tech, automotive, and now financial content. He believes every financial topic has a clearer way to be explained, and won’t stop until he finds it. When he’s not in front of a camera or editing copy, he’s either down a tech rabbit hole or researching a car he has no intention of buying.
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