Poll Part of Investor Education Week
NOTE TO EDITORS: This is the first of six news releases provided by the Nova Scotia Securities Commission in advance of Investor Education Week, April 25-May 1.
Educating investors for a complex investment world is the national focus of the second annual Investor Education Week, April 25-May 1.
Canadian securities regulators have organized a full week of events to promote investor education. Activities include the release of a major public survey, and new educational materials.
The survey results, conducted by the Angus Reid Group, will be made public Sunday, April 25. The survey tested a cross-section of Canadians on their knowledge of personal investing. The information will help regulators in their efforts to protect investors through education.
The survey and many of the week's other activities are sponsored by the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), the association of Canada's provincial and territorial securities regulators. Part of the CSA's role is to develop educational programs that give investors a broader knowledge of capital markets, and protect them from investment scams and fraud.
Senior regulators will attend a variety of public events, ranging from radio call-in shows to special seminars.
Twenty-six free public seminars on investing, co-sponsored by the CSA and the Canadian Securities Institute, will be held throughout the country. In Nova Scotia, a seminar will be held in Halifax on Wednesday, April 28, at the World Trade and Convention Centre at 7 p.m.
Four new educational aids are included in a special CSA kit designed for Investor Education Week. Included is a worksheet that prompts people to set clear financial goals and assess their willingness to take investment risks. There is also a poster detailing characteristics of various investments, and brochures on mutual funds and the potential dangers of dealing in the exempt securities market.
The CSA wants investors to be better equipped to deal with the rapid changes in capital markets, including Internet investing and the potential for instant international scams. Educated investors are better protected against the risks that are part of investing.
Brochures on getting started in investing, choosing financial advisers, how to read a prospectus, and the Internet were part of CSA's first Investor Education Week initiatives last year.
Information collected from the Angus Reid survey will be the basis for new CSA initiatives in its ongoing educational efforts and for the third annual Investor Education Week next year.
The week is part of an international education effort. Securities regulators in North, Central and South America are working together to help the public learn more about investing.
The kits, including the new materials, are available at no charge from the Nova Scotia Securities Commission by e-mailing [email protected] or phoning 902-424-7768.
The Nova Scotia Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating trading in securities within the province.