More Filipinos urged to save, invest

MANILA—Social enterprise The Global Filipino Investors Inc. (TGFI) encourages more Filipinos here and abroad to save and invest their money properly to take advantage of the growing Philippine economy.

TGFI Chief Executive Officer and Founder Floi Wycoco said they aimed to reach one million Filipinos to gain financial education over the next five years.

Wycoco said target segments were overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), families of the OFWs, the millennial market and office workers.

The Group has now over 90,000 community members and growing, and has communities in more than 12 countries.

“From handling your finances to doing a business, there is a need for proper financial education,” he said in a press briefing. “People should realize that we have to make financial education popular, it should be part of culture of every Filipino family.”

Wycoco noted that financial literacy covered different segments including business, agriculture, investments and entrepreneurship including franchising.

TGFI will hold the Financial Literacy Summit at the SMX Convention Center in Manila this April 1 and 2, targeting an audience of 3,000 composed of OFWs and their families and millennials.

“We are starting to tap the millennial market starting with the Financial Literacy Summit. We think they are the next generation,” he added.

With the theme “Learn to Earn”, this Summit will have 40 renowned speakers from different industries from chief executive officers, market leaders, celebrities and politicians that support financial literacy advocacy.

The summit’s tracks include investing; earning online, freelancing and startups, real estate and entrepreneurship.

Marvin Fausto, business development consultant at COL Financial Philippines, hopes that the Summit will help more Filipinos learn managing their money and investing in their future.

“This next 10 years is going to be the most critical era period of the Philippines. Filipinos should learn about investing (now) because after 10 years, 20 years, the economy will slow down because the demographic is going to be much older,” he explained.

As the Philippine economy is expected to grow 6 to 7 percent over the next 10 to 15 years, Fausto said it was imperative for Filipinos, especially the ones who are earning, to save and invest their money properly.