The kanji (Chinese characters) representation based on sutras is '弁才天,' but in Japan the character 'zai' (才) can also be written as a character meaning money (財), and this led the goddess to become worshipped as a goddess of wealth and expressed as '弁財天.'
経典に準拠した漢字表記は本来「弁才天」だが、日本では「才」が「財」の音に通じることから財宝神としての性格が付与され、「弁財天」と表記する場合も多い。