The importance of saving

A recent Metrobank survey conducted in October found that Filipinos' reasons for saving evolve as they move through different life stages.

- MARIANNE GO

The study showed that younger adults tend to focus on financial security and personal needs, while working adults prioritize buying a home or funding travel. Middle-aged savers, however, prefer to concentrate on retirement and their children's education.

For many Filipinos, according to the study, saving is a way to feel prepared for the future. Elders often remind the younger generation to save or “mag-ipon,” an advice that continues to resonate today and even more so when the economy is expected to slow down due to both internal and external factors.

In my own personal experience in the 1960s, my first saving experience and lesson from my parents was a cute big ceramic piggy bank in which they encouraged me to drop in all the loose coins and small peso bills that they would give me, as well as those given by my aunts and uncles, so that I could buy my favorite ChocNut candy, which then cost a mere five centavos per piece!

Unfortunately, there was a big catch in my savings journey - once I had dropped in the coins and peso bills, there was no way to get them out unless you break open the ceramic piggy bank... WHAT?! Nobody explained that to me! I felt cheated since I had to wait until the piggy bank was full.

And when that day finally came and we broke my cute, fat pink and white piggy with a curly pink tail, my mother brought me to the bank to finally open my own savings account, with her as my co-account. Sadly, she only allowed me to buy 25 centavos worth of Choc Nut.

While priorities have shifted over time, the goal remains the same: financial security and peace of mind.