The JSE calls on the youth to learn about investing through the 2018 JSE Investment Challenge

Ralph Speirs, CSI Officer at the JSE.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) invites all high school learners and university students interested in the investment world to register for the 2018 JSE Investment Challenge. The JSE Investment Challenge, which runs from March to September. Now in its 45th year the Challenge is South Africa’s largest financial literacy initiative. It is aimed at introducing the youth to financial markets and investing.

“South Africans are generally not good savers when compared with other countries around the globe, and the JSE believes that one of the ways to address this concern is through reaching out to the youth and teaching them about the importance of saving and investing from a young age,” says Ralph Speirs, CSI Officer at the JSE. The Investment Challenge gives young people an opportunity to engage with the world of investing by buying shares in a virtual portfolio and, at the same time, be in line to win some excellent prizes.

Last year, school enrolment increased by 18% while university enrolment increased by 14%. The JSE also saw an increase in the following provinces: Gauteng, by 38% and KwaZulu Natal by 10%.

Participants for both the Schools Challenge and the University Challenge are required to group themselves into teams made up of a maximum of four learners. For the University Challenge, a minimum of two and a maximum of four students are required per team. Each team is given a virtual sum of R1 million which they can use to trade JSE-listed shares. This virtual arena allows young people to practise trading in a risk-free environment.

In the University Challenge, the top three prizes are valued at R60 000, with first place winners getting R25 000 plus an all-expenses paid trip to an International Stock Exchange. The contestants in second place receive R20 000 and those in third place, R15 000. This year for the first time there will also be monthly prizes for University students to the value of R3 000 per month.

For the Schools Challenge, each month the best performing school team in each Portfolio will win R3 000 per team. There are final prizes for the top five school teams to the value of R180 000 for all three portfolios.

Speirs concludes, “Registrations for the 2018 Challenge are still open. The JSE encourages the youth of South Africa to register and broaden their understanding of how the Stock Market works. This is also an opportunity to prepare them for the future in the case when they will be earning salaries and needing the investing and saving avenues to put their monies.”

To find out more, visit: Schools or University or contact the Investment Challenge coordinators on 011 520 7129/ 7344. For further interaction, visit Facebook and Twitter.