Over 17K students take part in sixth BSE International Financial Olympiad

Mumbai : Over 17,000 students from across India took part in the recently held sixth BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) International Finance Olympiad.

The aim of the event, which was jointly organised by the Eduheal Foundation (EHF) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) was to promote awareness about financial literacy and to discover the best young talent in finance.

The Eduheal Foundation is an international NGO promoting education and health.

Students participating in the Finance Olympiad were selected from over 600 schools for the national-level year-long competition. Over 125 students competed to win the competition.

The first round of the BSE International Financial Olympiad covered 202 cities in 24 Indian states and 108 students were selected for the final in Mumbai.

The award function was held at the iconic BSE Convention Hall and winners received cash scholarships worth Rs.15 lakhs to pursue higher studies.

Dr. Sandeep Ahlawat, Managing Trustee, Eduheal Foundation, said, "Being leaders in (conducting) school Olympiads, we reach out to lakhs of budding scientists and mathematicians across thousands of Indian schools to give them a WOW experience. This once in a lifetime experience includes going to the iconic Bombay Stock Exchange for BIFO or the ISRO space launches for NSSO."

"Our experience with conducting Olympiads like the Maths and Science Olympiad for school children convinced us that this is a good vehicle for generating interest in financial concepts among school children. Hence, we have been organising the BSE International Financial Olympiad for the last five years," he added.

Ambarish Datta, Managing Director and CEO, BSE Institute Ltd., said, "Young people nowadays face more responsibilities and challenges than ever before. They now bear more of the costs of their own education. They also tend to borrow large sums of money at an early age. Hence, it is very critical for them to be financially literate at an early age."

He felt that having a fun-filled national-level completion to help school children acquire financial knowledge was an ideal alternative to existing conventional approaches to teaching.

"This is the fifth year of this event and we have had a very good response from all over the country. I am confident that the BSE International Financial Olympiad will go a long way in encouraging our youth to be financially literate."