In theory

IN A typical model for a hybrid approach, a husband and wife hold some joint accounts while also keeping their own separate savings accounts.

They usually disclose their salaries to each other but may not consult one another on personal savings and spending.

Nor do they reveal how much they have saved individually.

They split the expenses according to their preferences - either by going Dutch on every expense or apportioning expenses according to how much each can afford.

Some financially savvy couples may choose to handle their insurance and investment decisions separately, and usually even engage different financial advisers.

In practice

Ms E. Tan, a marketing executive in her 30s, regularly goes to a certain coffee joint for appointments that her husband knows nothing about.

Over a latte, she confides her financial secrets - and sometimes more - to good friend and financial adviser Annette, who helps her keep track of her NTUC Income insurance policies, investments and secret savings account in which she has stashed what she calls 'a tidy sum for the 'what if' scenarios in life''.

'It's not that I don't trust my husband to take care of me, but I was brought up in a one-parent family, so my mother hammered home the point that women have to support themselves if something happens to the husband. Money is a good shield,' says Ms Tan, who does not have children.

Mr Tan acknowledges that his wife's insecurities about money stem from her upbringing.

'I agreed to us having separate savings accounts, as I understand she needs time to overcome her past.

'We contribute roughly the same amount to a joint account for our household expenses, and I try to update her regularly about my own financial matters, so she knows I'm stable and able to provide for her.''

The couple acknowledges that this hybrid arrangement works only for those who trust each other to be prudent with their personal expenditure and savings. It is also less conducive in planning for a family nest egg.

'If I were a gambler, then such an arrangement helps me to hide it from her, but she would also be justified in keeping a separate account in case I tried to pilfer from her,' says Mr Tan.