POSB launches national savings drive, aiming to help over 150,000 students save additional $35m by 2026

POSB has launched a national savings drive to cultivate good saving habits in students amid concerns about their increased spending.

The drive aims to help more than 150,000 primary and secondary school students collectively save an additional $35 million by 2026, said the bank on Friday (July 19).

As part of the initiative, POSB will be expanding its existing financial literacy outreach programme to more schools and partnering with organisations such as the People's Association and National Library Board to scale these financial literacy programmes to neighbourhoods.

POSB will kickstart the savings drive by hosting assembly talks and workshops in at least 100 MOE-run primary schools and pre-schools, benefiting 40,000 to 50,000 students, said the bank.

These talks will show students how to distinguish between needs and wants, and also touch on the importance of making wise spending choices and having savings.

Students will learn how to recognise different denominations of money, how to count it, as well as how to make cashless transactions in a responsible manner through the use of specially designed worksheets and hands-on activities.

The bank has also launched a new matched savings initiative, called the POSB Smart Buddy 2X Savings Booster, to encourage children to save daily.

This initiative rewards every dollar saved by a child from their allowance with two digital "Smiley Stamps".

One Smiley Stamp is equivalent to 50 cents and students can collect up to 20 of these digital stamps every month via the POSB Smart Buddy app.

This means that a child that saves at least $10 in a month would gain another $10 in savings through this initiative.

Head of POSB, Nelson Neo emphasised the bank's belief that learning how to manage money from an early age is an essential life skill.

"It helps children grow into financially responsible adults, capable of confidently navigating future economic uncertainties," he said.

"By introducing a more programmatic and progressive approach to teaching financial literacy, we can help young children establish a strong financial foundation from an early age, setting them up for future success."

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bhavya.rawat@asiaone.com