Abstract:
Financial literacy is one of the most important considerations for leadership teams in South Africa’s retail banks today, and ignoring the issue may result in further economic downfall for many. South Africa is riddled by inequalities, with a key contribution to this being the low levels of financial literacy. To ascertain where the biggest impact can be made, it needs to be understood how financial literacy can be measured. The role of South African retail banks, in collaboration with financial professionals such as wealth managers and financial advisors, was explored here to understand their impact on financial literacy education and financial literacy measurement.
The purpose of the research was to gain further insights into the role that financial professionals in South African retail banks play in regard to the concept of financial literacy. Both the demographics and the current economic situation mean that measurement of financial literacy is an important concept to explore, in addition to the above. This research aimed to understand and explore the concept of utilising financial professionals to enhance financial literacy and financial literacy measurement in South Africa.
This study was objectives-based, focusing on exploratory research. Deductive reasoning was the research approach followed, together with a qualitative research methodology. Eighteen financial professionals – predominantly from one retail bank in South Africa – formed part of the interview sample. Data was analysed using a thematic approach with the aid of ATLAS.ti software.
The research established that financial professionals play a significant role in financial literacy education and measurement within the retail banking ecosystem. The research concludes that measurement of financial literacy should be considered a more significant topic, so enabling financial professionals to be better equipped to perform their roles. Incentives would assist here.
