Financial and consumer patterns of high-income population in Russia: An empirical analysis

The article is devoted to the analysis of the economic profile of the highincome population in Russia, a group that, despite its status as a significant player in the economy, which largely determines the demand for goods and services, as well as setting consumer trends, remains understudied. This is a global scientific lacuna that is particularly relevant in the Russian context, given the level of heterogeneity in the distribution of wealth among the most affluent households. Studying high-income groups is an important task for the development of monetary and fiscal programs and policies. The relevance of this study lies in the need to identify the economic profile of the upper decile in Russia as a separate category of consumers in the economy. The empirical basis of the study is a set of primary data collected by the authors as part of a separate survey of the upper decile income group, which is part of the monitoring studies of the Economic Behavior of Households project at the Higher School of Economics (HSE). The scientific novelty of the study lies in the creation of a socio-economic profile of the upper decile households and the identification of differentiated strategies for saving and consumer behavior among this group. The stratification factor within this cohort is not only the number of disposable resources, but also the structure of assets and the type of sources of passive income. The analysis identifies two behavioral models of high-income households: the “rentier” and “depositor” strategies. The former is characterized by a predominant concentration of physical assets in the form of real estate, while the latter involves the use of financial instruments and a higher level of education. The transition to a diversified portfolio that combines both types of income is statistically associated with an increase in overall wealth and the stage of the respondents’ life cycle. The results obtained allow us to refine our understanding of the structure of Russian wealth and the behavioral incentives of the group that forms the country’s main investment and consumer potential.