NYSE Money Sense

A new online experience at NYSE Money Sense offers information and guidance about responsible finance. Brought to you by NYSE Euronext’s Financial Literacy Advisory Committee, NYSE Money Sense content is free for consumers, and listed companies are encouraged to distribute it to their employees.

Making Money Sense

NYSE Euronext wants to empower working Americans when it comes to financial literacy and is calling on listed companies for help.

Stephen Rountree

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Few organizations find themselves as closely associated with investors’ financial well-being as NYSE Euronext (NYX). The company is leveraging this distinction to help ease the difficulty many workers have in understanding and managing their money, particularly now that the economic and financial crisis has dealt them such a blow. During April, National Financial Literacy Month, NYSE Euronext launched a comprehensive financial literacy initiative, at the heart of which is NYSE Money Sense, a new online resource designed to help Americans become better consumers and money managers.

“With the economy remaining fragile and unemployment persisting, it is time to take bold action to empower Americans with the skills to make sound financial decisions,” says NYSE Euronext CEO Duncan Niederauer. “We took on this challenge and are calling on our listed companies to help.”

To do so, companies may distribute NYSE Money Sense content to employees and offer links to NYSE Money Sense on their internal networks. The Website connects consumers with leading financial sources that provide insights on a range of personal-finance topics across five categories: earn, spend, save, borrow and protect. 
It features Q&As and in-depth reviews of financial sites. It also allows users to ask questions of a panel of experts and take a test, upon completion of which participants receive a certificate showing their score.

To help shape and advance its efforts, NYSE Euronext formed a distinguished Financial Literacy Advisory Committee. Tahira K. Hira, professor of personal finance and consumer economics at Iowa State University, is chairperson. “I am so proud of the New York Stock Exchange for identifying the important role it could play in improving individual consumers’ economic health,” she says. “As a prominent member of our U.S. and global business communities, the NYSE recognized the seriousness of the issue, wanted to connect with working American adults and came up with a plan to prepare them to make better financial decisions. Together we’re going to make a change in our nation’s future economic health, and I’m very excited about that.”

Hira hopes more companies will recognize the financial challenges in the U.S. and feel compelled to do something. “We want them to care about their employees’ financial health and then take steps to better equip them to make decisions,” she says.

The site launched during Financial Literacy Week (April 26-30) at NYSE Euronext, when all week The Opening Bell^® and The Closing Bell^® recognized companies for their contributions to financial literacy and advocacy, including Visa Inc. (V) and The McGraw-Hill Cos. (MHP), which — along with The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BK), The Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) and Discover Financial Services (DFS) — is delivering NYSE Money Sense content to employees. “By leveraging our reputation and our community of listed companies, NYSE Euronext is positioned to improve working Americans’ financial capabilities,” says Niederauer. “Improving our nation’s financial skills will have profound implications on our financial security and ultimately our economy.”

50 percent of Americans do not have a “rainy day” fund for unanticipated financial emergencies, according to a national survey by The FINRA Foundation.