Big fund houses join forces to build up financial literacy

CEBU, Philippines - Big fund houses are joining forces to reinforce efforts to uplift the financial literacy of Filipinos and maximize the conducive environment for investing owing to the low interest rates and bullish stock market.

Top executives of fund management companies such as COL Financial, ATR Asset Management, First Metro Asset Management, Philam Asset Management, PhilEquity Management, and Sun Life Management were in Cebu Monday for a whole day wealth management summit hosted by SM Investment Corporation to provide Cebuanos wider options on how to manage their funds effectively and profitably.

First Metro Asset Management president Augusto Casio said the Filipinos’ awareness on putting their money in other investment ‘baskets’, aside from the traditional bank savings or time deposit, is now on the rise. However, this growing curiosity should be well complemented with extensive financial literacy programs.

The Philippines is still in its infancy in terms of saving and building their wealth in equity investments, capital market, and even in the insurance products, but the interest is ripe. Thus, proper guidance and further education should be constantly done.

Of the over 100 million Pinoys, only about 1.7 million have insurance premium, 750 thousand are playing in the equity market, and 300 thousand have put their savings on mutual funds.

Fund managers are constantly urging Filipinos, especially the earning young professionals, regardless of monthly income, to consider other options, as their bank savings, or time deposits do not give higher yield nowadays due to low interest rate.

COL Financial president and chief executive officer Dino Bate echoed Casio's statement, saying because Filipinos are now seeing the value of building their wealth in various investment channels, fund houses like COL and other members of the Philippine Investment Fund Association (PIFA), are now bringing themselves closer to the market, both in online and offline channels.

"Equity investment is something new for most of Filipinos. But just like the cellphone in the 1990s, this phenomenon in wealth building is going to be a craze in the near future," said Bate explaining that once the mainstream Filipinos will find out the benefits offered by high yielding investment choices, portfolio building will no longer be a game for the rich and middle-class, but for ordinary monthly earners too.

This robust outlook of fund managers is strongly supplemented by the well-informed, highly ambitious and fearless characteristics of the young Filipinos, who are now making money on their own, and looking at contemporary options of investments.

Besides, the increasing per capita income of Filipinos, as confirmed by the close to 40 percent Gross National Income, there are a lot of funds that need to find investment homes.

To date, roughly only one percent of the entire population is investing, which prompted investment managers to double their time as opportunity for growth is now too wide. (FREEMAN)