The associations AEB, CECA and UNACC reaffirm their commitment to personal finance management training and the acquisition of digital skills with a novel initiative
The new website follows on from the Strategic Protocol to Strengthen the Social and Sustainable Commitment of the Banking Sector, and is designed to facilitate access to the training activities of banking institutions and associations
The Spanish Banking Association (AEB), CECA and the National Union of Credit Cooperatives (UNACC) today presented the new web platform "Aula Financiera y Digital". This site is designed with the goal of facilitating access to the knowledge and skills that will enable everyone to make more informed decisions about their finances, operate in all available environments and channels, and take advantage of the tools available to improve their financial well-being.
"Aula Financiera y Digital" offers users all the content, courses and programmes implemented by financial institutions and their representative associations in the field of financial and digital education, with the aim of making economic concepts more comprehensible and facilitating knowledge of online channels and procedures. This is a key tool to help improve the management of personal finances and adapt to the digitalisation of society in all areas, intensified by the pandemic.
The presentation of this new web platform, which took place at the CUNEF headquarters in Madrid, was inaugurated by Fernando Tejada, Director of the Credit Institutions Conduct Department of the Bank of Spain, and Raquel García Alcubilla, Director of the Strategy, Innovation and Sustainable Finance Department of the CNMV. Both have highlighted the commitment to financial education of the sector and, specifically, of the two organisations with the Financial Education Plan, which has been implementing actions under the "Finance for All" brand since 2008.
María Abascal, Director of Public Policy at the AEB, then took part in the presentation of the website, stating that "Aula Financiera y Digital" stems from a conviction held by the banking sector: "financial education is a very powerful tool that can improve our lives. This is why we want to make it freely available to everyone and improve the education of society as a whole". For his part, Antonio Romero, Corporate Director of Associative Services and Resources at CECA, pointed out the importance of the digital transformation, to which no sector is immune, and the vocation of banking institutions to "help people to be able to participate in the changes with all their capabilities", stressing that "digital connectivity, in addition to being a challenge, is also an opportunity in terms of accessibility and inclusion". Finally, Cristina Freijanes, Secretary General of UNACC, highlighted that "Aula Financiera y Digital" is a "unique initiative that gives visibility to the commitment of the entire financial sector to contribute to the improvement of financial and digital literacy". The event was closed by Pablo de Ramón-Laca, Director General of the Treasury and Financial Policy.
"Aula Financiera y Digital" is a dynamic, informative and multimedia website that includes news on financial and digital education in Spain, audiovisual content developed by the entities participating in the platform and indicators on the sector's commitment. In this regard, aggregate data from AEB and CECA for 2020 show that, of the more than 4,000 initiatives developed by the sector in financial and digital education, 40% have been in-person, which translates into 567,000 direct beneficiaries. In addition, "Aula Financiera y Digital" is interactive, as it integrates two types of search engines for training initiatives; and intuitive, as it offers two types of classifications, depending on the subject matter of interest to the user, or on the target group of each initiative.
This website is, in short, an expression of the sector's commitment towards financial and digital education, which it has been developing for several years and which is expressly included in the Strategic Protocol to Strengthen the Social and Sustainable Commitment of the Banking Sector.