Financial Education Day: experts on a decade of change in investor literacy
5 OCT, 2026
Access to markets has never been easier. A smartphone app, a podcast or an AI chatbot now offers what once required a private banker – yet the gap between what investors can buy and what they truly understand has arguably never been wider. According to the 2023 Eurobarometer Survey, only 18% of EU citizens show a high level of financial literacy, while a significant share of European household wealth still sits in bank deposits.
On the occasion of Financial Education Day, RankiaPro Europe asked industry professionals how financial education has evolved over the past ten years. Their answers point to a shift in focus: from simply explaining concepts such as risk, return and diversification, to teaching investors how to judge the quality of the information they receive, understand how sustainability shapes long-term value, and prepare the next generation for decisions that increasingly reach them through their phones.
João Cunha (MFG Consultants), Matt Wiles (EQ Investors), Mikaël Safrana (Capital Y) and Renu Pothen share their views below.
João Cunha, Founder, CEO & CIO, MFG Consultants
Over the past decade, financial education has become easier to access, while judging the quality of that education has become harder. Free courses, podcasts and digital tools have made it easier for people to learn at their own pace and revisit unfamiliar concepts.
In my case, it started at home. My father worked in banking for more than 40 years, which gave me a foundation I was fortunate to have. Academic study, professional experience and everyday life developed it further. The real learning happens when you have to apply that knowledge.
Social media has widened access, but it also rewards confidence and visibility, sometimes with little connection to competence. Some influencers promote ideas they barely understand, or dress up commercial interests as education. Unfortunately, convincing delivery can persuade people to risk savings they cannot afford to lose. Knowing who benefits from a recommendation is now part of financial literacy.
AI can now explain concepts in plain language and help people explore the consequences of different choices. But it can also make a weak answer sound authoritative. We still need the understanding to question its assumptions, check its reasoning and decide whether a suggestion fits our lives. The machine does not live with the consequences; we do.
For me, the next step is to teach people how to evaluate what they hear and apply what they learn. Financial education succeeds when someone can explain why a decision makes sense for them, including when the right decision is to do nothing.
Matt Wiles, Head of Research, EQ Investors
Financial education has evolved beyond traditional concepts such as risk, return and diversification to encompass a broader understanding of how capital allocation affects society and the environment. The rise of sustainable investment has been one of the key drivers of this shift.
Historically, sustainable investing was often seen as a niche approach focused on ethical exclusions. Financial education centred on portfolio construction, market behaviour, and manager selection, with limited consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. Today, sustainability considerations are embedded across investment processes, professional qualifications, and client discussions. Investors increasingly recognise that issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss, governance standards, and social inequality can influence long-term investment outcomes.
Advances in data and analytics have also transformed how sustainability is assessed. The growth of ESG research, climate metrics and impact measurement tools has enabled investors to evaluate risks and opportunities with far greater sophistication. Education has therefore moved from explaining what sustainable investment is to understanding how sustainability factors can affect valuation, risk management, and capital allocation decisions.
This shift has been reinforced by changing client expectations. Investors increasingly want to know not only how their portfolios perform financially, but also how their investments contribute to wider societal and environmental outcomes. As a result, financial education now plays a dual role: improving investment literacy while helping clients understand the relationship between financial returns, stewardship, and real-world impact.
For sustainable wealth managers such as EQ Investors, the challenge is no longer introducing ESG concepts, but deepening understanding of how sustainability can support long-term value creation, portfolio resilience, and responsible investment.
Mikaël Safrana, CIO, Capital Y
In January 2021, retail investors coordinating on a Reddit forum pushed GameStop shares to levels no fundamental analysis could justify. This episode captured a decade in which access to markets became almost free and instant: a smartphone app and a few francs open doors that once required a private banker. Knowledge has spread through podcasts and online videos, but judgement has travelled more slowly, and the distance between what investors can buy and what they understand has grown as structured products and private markets reach smaller portfolios.
The second change is more encouraging. Around our meeting table, the next generation and, more and more often women, take an active part in family wealth decisions. They arrive well read, sometimes over-informed, and expect every recommendation to be substantiated.
At Capital Y, we treat education as part of our mandate. Through our Y Academy, we share plain-language explanations of how markets and financial instruments work. With client families, we bring the next generation into governance discussions early, to prepare them for decisions they will one day take. Outside our client base, we regularly speak in academic settings and to young audiences about the foundations of investing, before markets reach them through their phones. As an independent firm with no products to sell, we do it with the sole intent of giving back some of the knowledge amassed throughout each of team members’ experience.
Financial noise will only grow louder. Investors who learn to look through it and apply sound principles, diversification and patience first among them, give their wealth the time to compound.
Renu Pothen, Consultant-Funds/ETFs Research
A decade ago, parking surplus in bank deposits was considered the safest option to grow wealth. However, the investment landscape has evolved so much since then and now includes a variety of options, such as active and passive investment strategies, digital assets, and alternative investments. As the investment opportunities have widened, the risks have increased manifold. This is why policymakers and educational institutions have started prioritizing financial education programs to create awareness among citizens and, in turn, help them make informed financial decisions.
The EU has been emphasizing on improving financial education and introducing easy and accessible investment opportunities for its citizens, as financial literacy levels have been relatively low. As per the findings of the 2023 Eurobarometer Survey, only 18% of EU citizens show a high level of financial literacy. This knowledge gap is reflected in investment decisions, as the recent EFAMA report states that in 2025, 40% of the financial wealth of European households is still held in bank deposits. However, there is a small shift in the allocations to investment funds, touching a high of 14% in 2025.
One of the biggest shifts in how financial education has evolved over the last decade has been the coordinated effort by schools to include financial literacy as part of their curriculum. This development becomes very relevant for our young people, as the widespread use of social media already exposes them to financial products at a much younger age. According to the World Economic Forum's 2024 Global Retail Investor Outlook, 30% of Gen Z is already starting to invest in early adulthood, compared with 6% of Baby Boomers who invested at that age. Additionally, Gen Z also shows a preference for investing in complex products such as crypto and alternative assets.
Today, Spain celebrates Financial Education Day. In this context, let me quickly look at the initiatives taken by the policymakers to promote financial education. Efforts to promote financial literacy began early with the Banco de España and the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) launching the national financial education strategy. As a result, the Financial Education Plan was created in 2008. The Finanzas Para Todos (Finance for All) website was launched by the CNMV and the Banco de España and is a part of the Financial Education Plan. The aim is to provide financial education to all segments of the population, regardless of age. In addition, financial education has also been incorporated into primary and secondary education, as well as vocational training courses, through different subjects. An example of how financial institutions within the country are promoting financial literacy is reflected in the report published by Banco Santander titled "The Currency of Learning: Global Perspectives on Financial Education”.This report shows that in 2024, 4 million people around the globe accessed their financial education initiatives and content.
Financial education programs will continue to help investors navigate a complex financial landscape and will contribute significantly to driving financial inclusion.
