StashAway: Cash hoarders lose $140,000 on stagnant 2% bank yields

StashAway says a disciplined plan of periodic contributions can beat leaving money untouched in low-yield accounts.

Investors who stayed in cash rather than investing over the past five years may have missed out on significant returns, with regular investing potentially generating far higher gains than leaving money in low-yield bank accounts, StashAway said.

Based on its analysis, the digital wealth manager said an investor who contributed $10,000 a month to a StashAway managed balanced portfolio from January 2021 would have earned about $170,000 in returns over five years, compared with about $30,200 if the same amount had been left in a bank account earning 2% per annum.

This represents a difference of about $140,000, which StashAway said illustrates the opportunity cost of delaying investment.

For 2025, StashAway said its flagship General Investing portfolios delivered average returns of 17.5% in US dollar terms, and that clients earned more than US$275m in total returns across its managed portfolios during the year.

The firm also reported stronger traction among high-net-worth and emerging affluent clients, with assets under management in its StashAway Reserve offering– aimed at clients investing $1m or more– growing by more than two times YoY.