Resources to help Malaysian youngsters take the next step in taking charge of their own financial journey.

“Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom”, by the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard.

In today’s world of near-limitless knowledge, it can be hard for young Malaysians to find and identify relevant financial and investment resources from which to learn. This isn’t easy even for parents, uncles, and aunties who want to mentor the younger generation.

According to the Malaysian Securities Commission, Malaysian youths cite the following as the biggest barriers to investing:

  1. Risk Appetite (82% cited this): High-risk, concerns for fraud and scams, worried about losing money.
  2. Well-being and accessibility (74%): Not enough money to invest, lack of time and financial education
  3. Knowledge (69%): Lack of knowledge, lack of reliable sources of information

Targeting teens and young adults, here are 7 finance and investment resources that we believe are relevant and useful for young Malaysians.

#1: Financial Education Network (FEN)

If you are struggling to start, Financial Education Network could be the best resource to start from.

The interface is very accessible and interactive as it first asks you which life stage are you at – student, youth, adult, and retiree. You can choose student or youth. From there, you can choose what financial objective you want to learn about. For example, these are the choices for youth (“I am a Youth Looking to Learn About”)

  • Earn
  • Save
  • Manage
  • Grow
  • Protect
  • Business

Each option brings you to a list of resources that you can refer to. Note that FEN is more of a gateway that connects you to the relevant websites and organisations that have the content.

However, it does also have some pretty and engaging infographics that talks about personal finances. Here are some examples:

source: fenetwork.my

#2: Belanjawanku by EPF

You might have heard of Belanjawanku, the publication by Employee Provident Fund (EPF) that went viral on social media a while back.

Belanjawanku provides estimates of monthly spending on various goods and services to achieve a ‘reasonable’ standard of living in major cities in Malaysia, broken down by family size. These goods and services include:

  • Food
  • Housing
  • Healthcare
  • Utilities
  • Childcare
  • Personal savings
  • Ad-hoc
  • Social participation
  • Transportation
  • Personal care

By providing guidance on what spending should look like, Belanjawanku is a good reference point for young Malaysians to plan their (current and projected) expenses and income. It’s also a good stepping to initiate conversations regarding career path, investments, budgeting, goal setting, so on and so forth.

#3: RIA by EPF

While retirement is very far away for youngsters, it is a very important topic to think about. The earlier they begin planning, the better they can catch up with however much they need. According to Khazanah Research Institute, many unprepared young Malaysians are unable to save for their retirement.

The Retirement Income Adequacy (RIA) which is set to be published by EPF in January 2026 will set out savings target in Malaysian’s EPF accounts to achieve these following amount by retirement age of 60:

  1. Adequate Savings: RM650,000
  2. Basic Savings: RM390,000
  3. Enhanced Savings: RM1,300,000

However, at the current stage, the RIA does have a useful table for how much to save for young adults planning for their retirement. Check it out!

Table: New Basic, Adequate and Enhanced Savings Levels

By being aware of retirement figures, youngsters can better plan their finances in advance so that their lifestyle expenses can take into consideration the sums they ought to set aside for retirement. The earlier they begin, the less demanding the sum, especially as they harness the natural power of compounding.

#4: Kelab Pelaburan Bijak by ASNB

For Malaysian teens who are still in secondary school and keen to learn more about their personal finances, Kelab Pelaburan Bijak (KPB) could be a good place to go.

The KPB program was established by Amanah Saham Nasional (ASNB) and is available for many schools in Malaysia. It’s like a curriculum club that gives exposure to students on personal finance and investments.

According to the SC, 51% of youths think talks and seminars to be the most effective in learning. A club in school will be effective for students to get access to talks, seminars, and also other online resources.

However, not every school has a KPB. Check the website for more details and do talk to your child’s school principal or PIBG/PTA to get conversations rolling.

#5: Invest Smart by SC

Invest Smart was established by the SC in 2014 to help regular people learn more about investments, and more specifically scams.

It does have several ways of delivering its information that could be appealing to young adults:

  1. Infographic visuals: Mainly about the latest scams and how to avoid being scammed.
  2. Videos: Also mostly anti-scam videos
  3. Webinars/Podcasts: A 15-series podcasts about investments in Malaysia

For learners who want to keep up-t0-date on the latest scams, Invest Smart’s infographics and videos do quite a good job at this. 40% of youths think that information delivered through social media are effective.

For example, Invest Smart recently collaborated with Douglas Lim, the comedian to talk about anti-scam topics.

#6: Money Smart by FDIC

If you are unfamiliar with this, that’s fine. Money Smart is a U.S. government financial literacy program targeted at young adults run by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

While it is of U.S. origin, the program is actually free and consists of 12 personal finance modules that is applicable to almost everyone regardless of country. The 12 modules are:

  1. Banking
  2. Setting goals and making financial decisions
  3. Making the most of your income
  4. Your spending and saving plan
  5. Saving for your goals and future
  6. Building your credit history
  7. Borrowing basics
  8. Charge it right (credit cards)
  9. Protecting your money and identity
  10. Buying a car
  11. Paying for education and training
  12. Living on your own

Conclusion

Many adults often sigh and say “if only we knew financial stuff sooner”. If you have a teen or a young adult, consider sharing with them these age-appropriate resources to further develop their financial knowledge. Initiate conversations and get them to talk about what they are learning. Who knows, you might learn a new thing or two too!

 

Let us know in the comments below what resources are you using now!

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