Salary vs wealth: Why a Rs 70,000 paycheck equals a Rs 1 crore asset, wealth expert explains the math 

In a striking take on personal finance psychology, Chartered Accountant Nitin Kaushik has said that most salaried individuals in India dramatically underestimate their own financial worth, treating their monthly income as survival money instead of recognising it as a high-value asset.

“Your salary is a hidden asset worth over ₹1 crore, yet most people behave as if they are broke,” said CA Nitin Kaushik. “When someone earns ₹70,000 a month, they think of it as just cash flow. But if you actually calculate the capital required to generate that income passively, the number is shocking.”

According to Kaushik, a person earning ₹70,000 per month makes ₹8.4 lakh annually, and to generate the same income through a safe fixed deposit at 7% interest, one would need around ₹1.2 crore in capital.

“At a standard 7% return, you need roughly ₹1.2 crore sitting in the bank to produce the same income that a salaried professional earns through work,” CA Nitin Kaushik said. “That means if you earn ₹70,000 a month, you are effectively managing a personal balance sheet that contains a ₹1.2 crore asset — your own earning ability.”

He added that the value becomes even higher when interest rates fall.

“If safe returns drop to 6%, the capital required jumps to about ₹1.4 crore,” he said. “In that situation, a salaried professional is literally out-earning someone who already has over a crore in fixed deposits.”

Kaushik emphasized that unlike fixed deposits, human earning capacity is not static and can grow over time.

“Fixed deposits struggle to beat inflation, but professional salaries in India’s growing sectors have risen 8–10% annually over the last decade,” CA Nitin Kaushik said. “Your earning potential is an appreciating asset, not a fixed one.”

He explained that income growth alone can dramatically increase financial value.

“If a 30-year-old increases income by just 8% per year, the monthly salary can reach ₹1.5 lakh by age 40,” he said. “To generate that income passively, you would need nearly ₹2.5 crore in capital.”

Kaushik also warned that many people focus too much on small investments while ignoring their biggest wealth generator.

“We obsess over investing a few thousand rupees in the market but ignore the fact that one skill upgrade or job change can increase income by 30% in a year,” CA Nitin Kaushik said. “No stock market delivers that kind of return consistently.”

Summing up, he said professionals must rethink how they view their careers.

“Your salary is not middle-class cash flow,” CA Nitin Kaushik said. “It is the yield from the largest asset you will ever own — your human capital.”