Elvira Nabiullina, the Governor of the Bank of Russia, addressed the 10th All-Russian Congress of Financial Education Volunteers on June 21, 2024. She emphasized the significance of social initiatives in financial education and underscored the importance of trust in information sources.
"We attach great importance to your efforts," Nabiullina stated. "Social initiative delivers flexibility and knowledge of daily life realities rather than what we notionally call the knowledge of ‘target audiences’. It also creates trust since people tend to trust people like themselves who are nearby."
Nabiullina highlighted the collaboration between the Bank of Russia and the Ministry of Finance aimed at transforming financial literacy strategies into building a financial culture. She noted that volunteers play a crucial role in this mission due to their ability to disseminate current knowledge.
"Continuous learning is a must for volunteers who need to spread current, not obsolete, knowledge among people," she said.
The Governor outlined three primary priorities: combating fraud, enabling financial services for vulnerable groups such as the elderly and disabled, and ensuring service availability in sparsely populated areas. She stressed that these priorities require focused efforts due to limited resources.
"Our first priority is the fight against fraud," she asserted. "All available data and everyday experience suggest that fraudsters are evil for people regardless of age, social status, and unfortunately, level of education if people lack appropriate financial knowledge."
Nabiullina also discussed advancing long-term saving and investment instruments like Long-term Savings Programmes and Individual Investment Accounts (IIS-3), emphasizing their reliance on enhanced financial literacy.
"These programmes will only make a difference if people have long-term financial planning competences," she remarked.
Addressing recent trends in fraudulent activities, Nabiullina pointed out issues such as fraud credit schemes targeting individuals through loans and schoolchildren being exploited by criminals using their bank cards.
"When schoolchildren receive their cards, fraudsters may often use them as droppers," she explained. "This is where financial competence is indispensable for schoolchildren and students."
She called attention to other at-risk groups including rural migrants to cities and overindebted borrowers resorting to questionable schemes. Nabiullina stressed that nothing positive comes from attempting quick money through dubious means.
"The role of volunteers cannot be overstated," she concluded regarding efforts against fraudsters.
Nabiullina also mentioned new work formats involving cooperation with employers. An agreement with the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs was signed recently at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum to ensure regular involvement from employer associations in these educational efforts.
"Corporate training practices—when volunteers working nearby teach financial services and associated risks—can be a very impactful channel," she added before concluding her remarks by giving the floor to Mikhail Mamuta from the Bank of Russia.
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