By Silindzelwe Nxumalo
As the IOSCO World Investor Week (WIW) 2023 comes to an end, three young students have shared the E4,000 worth of prize money after winning the IOSCO WIW 2023 Essay Writing Competition hosted by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
The prize presentation event was held at the FSRA Head Office in Mbabane on Monday.
FSRA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ncamiso Ntshalintshali said during the IOSCO World Investor Week, the FSRA aimed to raise awareness through investors with investor resilience, crypto assets, and sustainability as a theme.
He shared that this year’s competition topic was ‘Why is sustainable investing important? Give a scenario on how it can be applied which was open to individuals aged 16 – 23 years. “As the FSRA, we are playing our part in building and ensuring our children become a financial-savvy generation,” he said.
He stated that public participation meant that they had achieved an important milestone, and they pledged to do better and improve their investor awareness programs next year for a greater financial survey nation.
He also said that as they came to the end of the week, they had a humbling experience during their essay competition.
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Ntshalintshali said the week had taken a leaf from the thematic areas that had been touched upon during the customer services week which in a way ensured they brought substance and topical issues around the crypto market’s development phase.
He appreciated the interaction with the public which was centred primarily on investor resilience, crypto assets, and the sustainability of investing. “We realize as the FSRA that the work we do as supervisors and regulators of the space from time to time, we need to take a leaf to ensure that our consumer education and the message we want to protect stay intact,” he said.
He also thanked the Eswatini Stock Exchange (ESE) and uMelusi Fund Managers for contributing towards the competition. He added that as the regulator they played the role of educating the public and such activities as the essay competition were more than welcome when they had to ensure that the message that they sent out was adequately received and used appropriately by the consumers.
Jimmy Malinga, who won position one in the competition taking home E2000, thanked the FSRA for the opportunity to have learned so much during the week and win.
Malinga said what made him victorious was researching all the topics that the FSRA had during the week after hearing about the competition from the radio.
. . . FSRA Preaches safety investment during the festive season.
The FSRA has urged the nation to be safe and invest well during the coming festive season especially those that would be getting money from stokvels.
FSRA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ncamiso Ntshalintshali said the FSRA was appreciative of IOSCO for trying to motivate the investing public to always be aware that they invest in safe assets and always be aware of the investments they were consuming during World Investor Week (WIW).
“In this ever-changing economic environment, it becomes an important intervention by the regulator and as we are going towards the festive season, we preach the safety and consumption of approved financial services,” he said.
The CEO stated that this was at the cornerstone of their mandate as FSRA. He said it was important for the nation to know that a smart investor knows that a risk-appropriate, long-term, and diversified investment plan could help them navigate changing economic conditions and market fluctuations.
He stated that they understood the impact of real rates of return, including the effects of inflation on different asset classes. “A smart investor understands that while sustainable investing may be described in different ways (such as ESG investing, socially responsible investing, or impact investing), it is important to consider whether an investment matches the investor’s goals, objectives, and risk tolerance,” he said.
He further urged investors to always review disclosure documents and understand that investments in sustainable finance may significantly differ from one another and need to be evaluated on their terms.
“A smart investor understands the risks associated with crypto assets, including fraud, volatility, misleading endorsements, and potential bankruptcy or insolvency of the issuer or intermediary,” he advised.