The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has launched a new financial education program specifically for young people aged 16 to 25. The MoneySmart Rookie initiative will sit alongside the existing MoneySmart program, offering financial literacy tools that are easy to understand.

Peter Kell, Deputy Chairman of ASIC, says young people often have difficulty knowing the difference between “needs” and “wants”, which can often be exacerbated by access to easy, but not necessarily cheap, finance. “They access credit, but do not understand their rights and responsibilities when they do,” he told the University of Technology in Sydney on June 18.

MoneySmart Rookie aims to help young people make smart financial decisions, and avoid the beginner “rookie” errors. “We not only want to raise their awareness, we want to motivate them to manage their money with confidence,” Kell said.

For more information, see: https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/life-events-and-you/under-25s