Summary:
Each month, the same event occurs: High-earning individuals have their salary deposited into their traditional bank accounts. Within days, the mortgage or rent is paid, credit card bills (often from another provider) are settled, and subscription services are covered. Alongside this, a large percentage of the salary received swiftly leaves the account and is sent to another investment platform such as Saxo, Endowus, IBKR, Syfe, or StashAway. This is not a fringe behaviour, but rather a mainstream shift in how affluent individuals manage their wealth.
These clients fall into a well-recognised category: HENRYs or High Earners, Not Rich Yet. They are thinking about their future, financially capable, digitally fluent, and increasingly proactive in building wealth. Yet, in many cases, their bank plays only a limited role in that journey. Beyond serving as a transactional anchor for salary deposits and routine payments, most banks are absent from being a part of their broader financial planning.
This is not just a missed opportunity. It reflects a misalignment between traditional banking offerings and the needs of an evolving, financially literate client base.
The unserved middle
Across Southeast Asia, the HENRY population is growing. A 2023 UBS report revealed that the number of millionaires in Singapore rose to over 333,000, even as the global tally declined. We expect this number to continue to grow, and the aspirations of wealth accumulation from high-earning individuals to grow along with it.
HENRYs sit in a gap that many banks have yet to address effectively. They do not meet the thresholds for private banking, but their expectations and financial activity have clearly outgrown the offerings of retail banking. What HENRYs encounter instead is a one-size-fits-all experience of basic tools, limited advice, non-competitive fees, and almost no proactive personalised engagement.
From our research and conversations with HENRYs, it is clear that this segment is engaged. In fact, HENRYs are actively seeking guidance and products, just not from their banks. They are turning to platforms that offer a more dynamic experience with easy onboarding, transparent fee structures, intuitive interfaces, and goal-based investment tools. These services are not necessarily superior in terms of depth – although in some instances this does cause a gap - but they are more accessible, more relevant, and more aligned with how this generation wants to manage money.
The core issue is not that banks lack capability. It is that the value is not being delivered in a way that meets HENRYs where they are.
Why banks are losing to fintechs
Investment platforms have succeeded by simplifying complexity. They present investment decisions in plain language, automate routine choices, and allow clients to track progress in real time. Their design principles are rooted in data analytics and user-centric banking, areas where banks are often slower to move due to legacy infrastructure and risk controls. For financially literate clients, these platforms often provide flexibility and control – two things they value highly. This does not mean banks are at a disadvantage. On the contrary, they have deep trust, regulatory credibility, and balance sheet strength that are foundational elements many fintechs often lack. However, unless banks evolve how they engage these progressively affluent clients, they risk losing not just wallet share, but long-term relevance.
This is especially true in Asia, where digital wealth management platforms are reshaping the landscape. In forums, discussing FIRE (Financially Independent, Retire Early), traditional banks are rarely the preferred platform, despite still being the default account for salary deposits. For banks that continue to rely on traditional segmentation and legacy product distribution, this shift poses a strategic risk.
Financial literacy is changing the game
Underlying this transformation is a significant rise in financial literacy, especially among younger professionals. While our research does show differences in the level of financial knowledge, the conversations point towards today’s clients wanting to be more informed, being more skeptical, and more inclined to question traditional products that offer limited transparency.
One area where this is becoming increasingly evident is in the perception of Investment-Linked Policies (ILPs). Previously popular as a hybrid investment-insurance product, ILPs once appealed to clients who lacked confidence or access to other investment options, however, that is no longer the case. Many HENRYs now view these products as overly complex, expensive, and insufficiently flexible. Fee structures are often difficult to understand, and the value received rarely feels proportional to the cost.
In fact, fees emerge as a central factor in client decision-making – something that correlates highly with financial literacy. More financially literate clients are asking not just how much they are paying, but what they are receiving in return. Transparency is no longer optional. Where fees exist, value must be clear, measurable, and ongoing.
This growing awareness is leading to a rejection of products that lack flexibility, clarity, or purpose. It is pushing banks to rethink how they structure, price, and communicate the value of their offerings.
What these clients actually value
Rather than assuming that HENRYs are disengaged, banks should ask: What would meaningful engagement look like?
- Our research and user interviews consistently point to the same set of expectations. The expectations are clear: Easy-to-use platforms
- Access to relevant investment products
- Personalised insights tied to individual goals
- A balance of automation and human touch
- A sense that their financial progress is being tracked
While these clients may not want to visit a branch or speak to an advisor monthly, they do want to know that someone, or something, is monitoring their financial wellbeing.
These are not unreasonable requirements, and neither should they sit outside the reach of most traditional institutions. But it requires banks to shift from product delivery to client enablement, especially in the context of wealth-building. Such shifts are reflected in the trend of technology-led wealth firms outpacing traditional counterparts.
Reframing the offering
The opportunity is clear. HENRYs are not future clients; they are valuable, present clients with evolving needs. Banks that continue to view them as “not quite there yet” are missing the point. By the time they meet internal wealth thresholds, the relationship will likely already belong to someone else.
Capturing this segment does not require launching a new product line or hiring an army of advisors. It requires banks to rethink how they engage, identify, and serve high-potential clients, long before those clients cross traditional segmentation lines.
That might include early-stage financial planning tools, hybrid advisory models blending automation and digital touchpoints, personalised communications, and clear upgrade pathways to premium offerings over time.
Done well, these changes create a sense of momentum and trust. Clients begin to associate the bank not just with transactions but with meaningful financial outcomes. This is not about competing with fintechs on user interface or speed alone. It is about leveraging core strengths, such as trust, security, and regulatory credibility, and delivering them through better experiences. HENRYs are building wealth today. The question is not whether they will become valuable clients. The question is: who will help them get there?
Banks that act early can shape the relationship, guide financial behaviours, and stay relevant throughout the wealth lifecycle. Those that wait will increasingly find themselves managing accounts that see inflows each month, only to watch the money flow straight out again.
At Synpulse we help banks and financial institutions across Asia better serve HENRYs and the growing mass-affluent market through digital transformation, customer journey redesign and scalable engagement models.
Connect and explore how we can help you future-proof your strategy.
