If you didn’t know, May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Month!
Let’s take a brief dive into not only the wealth gap that exists within this group itself, but some unique challenges facing Asian Americans on the financial front.
There are many different nationalities that fall into the Asian American group: the top 7 by population ranging from 5M to less than 1M are: Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean, Japonese, Native Hawaiian.
Asian Americans have become the most economically divided racial group in the US. Data shows Chinese, Indian and Japonese Americans as having the highest net worth in strong contrast to Filipino, Vietnamese and Koreans having the lowest. The top 10% were earning as much as 11x the bottom 10%, as recently as 2016, which was an increase of 77% in this wealth gap since 1970. This increase is far greater than another other racial demographic when it comes to wealth.
Since most Asian Americans are foreign-born, immigration is one factor, even as this population has some of the highest levels of education overall, and are finding roles in basic technology, not being native born has proved to create roadblocks for Asian Americans to have access to higher earning jobs with benefits, as data shows they have been overlooked and are less visible in senior level positions at only 6% of C-suite roles (Executive level such as CEO, CFO, etc).
Contrastly, Asian Americans have generally lower unemployment rates than the national average.
Another unique challenge to growing wealth among this population is the cultural care-giving aspect. It is very common for Asian Americans to be expected to be financially responsible for the multi-generational household’s needs.
Putting on your own oxygen mask first, as they say, is especially important when facing this challenge. It’s imperative to get a good system in place, perhaps reaching out for financial guidance, so that there is a sustainable plan in place that meets the needs of the earner(s) as well as anyone else expected to be cared for.
Secondly, another challenge is what’s been labeled as “The Model Minority Myth”, which describes Asian Americans as head down, hardworking without causing any “fuss” regarding their own needs or even an acknowledgement of the poverty and/or wealth gap. This expectation of assimilation is harmful to wealth building. Assimilation can come with a price, when you’re not allowed to come in as your full self. As Sarat Sethi, an Indian American immigrant in leadership in the investment sector stated “We all try to assimilate so well, but you can lose your own identity. You can be all of it and enjoy all of it.”
Unlocking Abundance 