HSBC Teams Up With College Students To Tackle Financial Literacy Crisis

SPRINGFIELD, Mo., April 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Financial literacy is critical to personal success, yet according to a recent poll by YoungMoney.com, only one in four people felt they had adequate knowledge of personal finances.  The poll mirrors results of the 2008 Jump$tart Coalition's Personal Financial Literacy exam that found financial literacy of high school students at the lowest in eleven years.

An innovative program is turning the tide.  Through a joint effort between HSBC and the global non-profit SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise), more than 25,000 college students worldwide have volunteered to teach financial literacy skills to nearly one million people. www.sife.org.  "Lack of understanding of these matters is widespread and manifests itself in different ways, such as high levels of personal debt," says Paul Sinclair, Education Executive, HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE: HBC).  "The Bank awards grants to college SIFE teams to take their programs to a wide range of community groups including school students, women from disadvantaged backgrounds, those seeking employment and other college students.  We hope that through this program we can raise the level of financial literacy across the world and so ensure a more sustainable future for us all."

Through the HSBC Financial Literacy Programme, SIFE teams apply for grants ranging from $250 to $1000 to help fund projects of their own creation that stimulate economic opportunity by helping others develop the personal financial management skills necessary to achieve financial independence.  

• More than 1,506 grants awarded.
• 2,202 projects completed.
• 25,250 college students participated.
• HSBC contributed more than $3 million to SIFE and to support teams' efforts.
• In 2009, HSBC disbursed 287 grants to college teams.

Elementary Students Exchange Currency in China

The Centenary College (Hackettstown, NJ) SIFE project Global Currency Adventure is just one of more than 2,202 projects in the works worldwide.

With elaborate table decorations, costumes and props, Centenary SIFE transformed classrooms into international markets of Australia, Brazil, China, Ghana and Russia.  More than 200 elementary students learned about market, mixed and planned economies plus gained an understanding of different languages, cultures and customs required to succeed in the global economy.  Every child was given a fanny pack, passport and six imitation dollar bills.  Upon entering each country, they visited the bank to exchange a dollar for the country's currency equivalent, then made a purchase while learning about environmental challenges, financial principles and ethical business behavior.  The entertaining program resulted in a 176% increase in measured knowledge.

HSBC Holdings plc

HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of the HSBC Group, is headquartered in London. The Group serves customers worldwide from around 8,000 offices in 88 countries and territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. With assets of US$2,364 billion at 31 December 2009, HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organizations. HSBC is marketed worldwide as "the world's local bank."  Visit www.hsbc.com.

SOURCE SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise)