A lack of confidence and knowledge are barriers for aspiring investors, according to a new survey from the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).
The survey, conducted by IIROC with The Strategic Counsel, polled 2,000 Canadians, 500 of whom were “aspiring investors” who were interested in, but not currently, investing.
Most of the aspiring investors surveyed were over the age of 40 (68%) with a post-secondary education (70%). Nearly half were in the workforce (45%) and almost one-third were retired (30%).
Almost half of aspiring investors (49%) said their number one reason for not investing was that they don’t know enough about it.
The majority said they weren’t confident in their ability to make investment decisions (60%), didn’t know the options for getting investment advice (61%) and were unaware of the financial products and services available to them (65%).
Aspiring investors were also less likely to think they could afford financial advice.
Forty-one per cent (compared to 23% of current investors) said they didn’t believe they had enough assets to get advice from a financial advisor, and 28% (compared to 18% of current investors) didn’t think they could afford financial advice.
In contrast, current investors had much higher levels of confidence and knowledge about investment decisions. Almost three quarters (72%) were confident in their ability to make investment decisions, and 67% said they were knowledgeable about the options available for getting investment information and advice.
Read the full survey, Access to Advice.