Boost financial education to nurture young investors, says London Stock Exchange boss
The boss of the London Stock Exchange has called for better financial education in schools to prevent a generation of young investors being shut out of capital markets.
Julia Hoggett, who was appointed to head the exchange last year, said a lack of financial education at a young age was preventing people from investing and therefore hampering wealth creation.
“It’s fundamental that savers, retail investors, policyholders and pensioners can invest in their future. But we need to ensure everyone has the right tools,” she said, as reported in the Mail on Sunday.
“Providing more education on how economies and markets work, from school age onwards, is an important first step.”
Hoggett added that there was “no silver bullet” to solve the problem and it was instead about how people “talk about markets’ real world impact”, as well as “enhancing financial literacy.”
Financial literacy rates in the UK have lagged those in other developed economies, with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), ranking the UK 15th of 29 OECD countries, with just 67 per cent of adults being assessed as financially literate.
Hoggett warned separately that talking about “the City” as something thing that matters only to bankers and people in the Square Mile risked alienating those who ultimately stand to benefit.
“It is investing back into companies, jobs and growth potential of the economy. We should be encouraging people to do so,” she told Financial News in an interview.