Women surely have some peculiar financial planning needs. We will not do too much in detail here – but suffice to say that some requirements are unique. Though most adult women I meet are married, I guess most of them will die alone – widowed, divorced, or not married at all. So at some stage if you are going to be alone, ensure that you know the basic. You may not know “goal setting” and “budgeting” but surely you should know how to withdraw money from the ATM.

One senior citizen I know gets bullied by her bank RM so she “invests” in instruments he chooses. His branch is right across the city and she spends Rs. 300 on a call taxi everytime she visits the bank. The bank RM has the temerity to tell her – you will not understand TDS so please get somebody along! When she took another senior citizen, he was also told the same thing. Never mind he is a retired Vice-President of a large family group who coolly sent an email to his bank chairman emeritus (who by the way was a family friend). The chairman pleaded inability to tame the “young turks”.

Let us remember one thing – whether you are a man or a woman we as a country are extremely senior citizen RUDE. Whether it is bankers, telephone companies, electricity companies – they behave very, very rudely with senior citizens. I wish I had the energy to start a movement for them like dignity foundation.