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HSBC Bank Has a Unique Way of Teaching Children on Achieving Financial Independence

When we talk about finances, the first thing that comes to our mind is to consult with a financial advisor. Our financial advisor will then teach us how to save and invest to achieve our financial goals and become financially independent.

But did you know you can instill the habits of saving even when you’re young? The HSBC Bank in the United Kingdom believes so. That’s why they create this unique way to help young children in developing the habit of saving to achieve financial independence at an early stage!

The Modified Fairytale

Most children love listening to bedtime stories. That’s why most parents see to it that they buy fairy tale stories to read to them before they sleep. However, the HSBC Bank gives a twist to this nightly routine.

A snippet from one of the most famous fairy tale stories of all time shows how the Fairy Godmother appeared in front of Cinderella and told her she could go to the ball. However, she didn’t have to marry the prince to get away from her struggles in life. Then Cinderella replied she always wanted to design her own sports shoes, hinting that she may have to work on saving her own money to fulfill her dreams.

The bank published a fairy tale story named “Fairer” and handed it to their clients and urged them to read it to their kids.

According to the bank, they published Fairer to help the boys and girls aim for financial independence even at such a young age. Their research almost shows 2/3 of girls claim they don’t understand money and its importance compared to 1/2 of boys of the same age.

HSBC also suggests the financial gender gap between the two is well in place by age 10. Furthermore, 43% of the girls say they’re less likely to be good in handling their pocket money compared to 51% of boys. And 34% of parents with daughters claim they avoid discussing money matters in front of their children, compared to 24% of parents with sons. These alarming research results prompted HSBC to create Fairer tales.

The Fairer Tales

HSBC revealed they collaborated with Emma Dodd, a popular children’s author to publish Fairer Tales: Princesses are doing it for themselves. The book can be downloaded online, and it’s also scheduled to be sent out to primary schools across the country.

The Princesses were depicted as strong women embarking on their journey to empower themselves. For example, Cinderella starts a business instead of marrying a prince, while Sleeping Beauty’s savings grow exponentially while she’s sleeping. Rapunzel, on the other hand, chops her hair off to make a ladder for herself rather than waiting for a prince to save her. She then redevelops the tower with a bank loan.

While HSBC’s financial campaign sounds fun, subversive, and laudable according to financial analysts, they are left wondering whether or not the parents are likely to read bedtime stories commissioned by a bank to their kids.

The bank cited some examples on the feedback they received from their clients when the parents shared the books to their kids. According to Rachel Richards, her seven-year-old daughter wasn’t particularly moved by the story since she didn’t think that princesses should rely on their princes or men in the first place to uplift their lives, which may be a good thing according to her.

Meanwhile, another client named Jill Smith said her nine-year-old and the oldest daughter named Alexa said the book’s message was powerful. She liked how the princesses used their brains and cleverness to work on achieving and realizing their dreams. It also helped Jill apply the ideas of saving money to start up her own business and discuss small business loans and earning interest with her daughter.

Developing Money Habits

The researchers add how it’s important for children aged seven to start learning the basic concepts of money to enhance themselves in making informed financial decisions in the future. According to the researchers, they support HSBC’s initiative to teach financial literacy to children.

But they’re also worried about whether the parents would be keen enough to recommend or download a children’s book from a bank. One of their participants revealed how she read the book first to ensure it wasn’t full of advertising before sharing the story to her daughter.

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