Third of pensioners can continue to save in old age

Around half of retired taxpayers have gross assets of more than CHF300,000 Keystone / Stephan Scheuer

Many retirees in Switzerland can continue to put money aside, with a majority also willing to bequeath the money they have saved.

Specifically, 34% of the people surveyed in Switzerland aged 65 and over are building up assets instead of reducing them, according to a Swiss Life surveyExternal link published on Wednesday. Some 44% said they spent about as much as they receive.

The remaining 22% use up at least part of their assets in old age. These figures haven’t changed much in recent years, the study authors wrote.

Around 57% of those surveyed also stated that it was important to them to leave a few francs for the next generation. “The desire to be able to pass on some money is a strong motivation to continue saving in old age,” said study author Andreas Christen of Swiss Life.

And there is plenty to bequeath. According to the study, around half of retired taxpayers have gross assets of more than CHF300,000 ($320,000).

The “golden” generation of pensioners has also become more financially satisfied on average in recent years, according to the survey. “This is partly explained by the fact that around a third of the 65- to 79-year-olds surveyed have themselves inherited CHF100,000 or more,” Christen said.

Pessimism among younger generation

The financial satisfaction of pensioners contrasts with the pessimism of the younger population. “They fear that they will have to work longer and save more – and that they will be less financially secure in old age than today’s retirees,” he said.

Some 47% of people of working age are pessimistic about their own old-age provision, around 47% expect to retire later and 73% believe they will have to save more themselves than the current generation of retirees. At the same time, 58% of those still working fear that they will be less financially secure in old age.

The study is based on two surveys conducted in January 2022 by the market research institute Link on behalf of Swiss Life. A total of 1,310 people aged 65-75 took part in the main telephone survey. In the online supplementary survey 1,030 people aged 25-79 took part.