Visa Canada Adds to Roster of Online Financial Literacy Games with Launch of Peter Pig's Money Counter

Game release coincides with Financial Literacy Month and Credit Education Week Canada, reinforcing Visa's commitment to improving financial literacy

TORONTO, Nov. 1, 2012 /CNW/ - In recognition of Financial Literacy Month in Canada, Visa Canada today launched Peter Pig's Money Counter, an online educational game designed to teach children aged 4-7 the value of money. Available for free on Visa's financial literacy Web site, Practical Money Skills, the game encourages players to grow their bank account by completing counting and sorting challenges.

"Peter Pig's Money Counter is another example of using teachable moments to help young Canadians learn about the value of money in a fun and interactive way," said Melissa Cassar, Head of Corporate and Public Affairs at Visa Canada. "It is the latest in a series of interactive, online games we have launched in Canada with a view to engaging Canada's youth and providing them with the basics of financial management."

Visa is launching the game in support of Canada's Financial Literacy Month (FLM), which takes place in November each year. As part of FLM, Visa is extending its sponsorship of Credit Education Week Canada (CEWC) for a sixth consecutive year, which again includes support for a student essay writing contest.

"We're proud to be sponsoring Credit Education Week again this year," said Cassar. "This annual event provides the type of practical advice and tools that Canadians of all ages need to become financially empowered. It's a natural fit for Visa, which has a global commitment to promoting financial literacy education."

This year's CEWC theme - money resolutions - was conceived to help Canadians set practical financial goals and establish positive budgeting habits that will strengthen the country's collective financial well-being. CEWC, taking place November 12-16 in cities across the country, is open to the public, and brings together financial experts ranging from consumer advocacy groups to members of government in a series of workshops throughout the week. Topics include: banking; financial resources for immigrants; budgeting and parenting; budgeting on a pension; fraud prevention; and tips for safely navigating social media.

"Visa's ongoing sponsorship reaffirms its commitment to helping Canadians take control of their finances, and to ultimately achieving financial peace-of-mind," said Laurie Campbell, CEO of Credit Canada Debt Solutions. "We are pleased that Visa is again supporting the student essay writing contest, which never fails to generate fresh insights into personal finance."

As part of its ongoing mandate to promote financial literacy in Canada, Visa Canada developed and maintains Practical Money Skills, a site that provides consumers, parents, educators and students access to free educational resources, including cost calculators, budget templates, games, quizzes, and more. Practical Money Skills materials are also available online in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Punjabi and Chinese.  Additionally, Visa Canada has worked with teachers to develop Choices & Decisions, a program available in both English and French that provides practical, ready-to-use, lesson plans for use in Canadian classrooms.

About Visa
Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency. Underpinning digital currency is one of the world's most advanced processing networks—VisaNet—that is capable of handling more than 20,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, ahead of time with prepaid or later with credit products. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.

Image with caption: "Visa Canada Adds to Roster of Online Financial Literacy Games with Launch of Peter Pig's Money Counter (CNW Group/VISA Canada Corporation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20121101_C3578_PHOTO_EN_19901.jpg

SOURCE: VISA Canada Corporation