PROFITUS Joins World Investor Week: From Mantas Kalnietis’ Experience to Lessons from the Financial Crisis

World Investor Week is taking place in Lithuania from October 5 to 11, and the crowdfunding platform PROFITUS is participating in the initiative once again. From investment fraud and common investor mistakes to investment psychology and Mantas Kalnietis’ attitude towards money, the platform aims to demonstrate through various activities that investing involves more than simply deciding where to allocate money.

Initiated by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), World Investor Week is being held for the tenth time this year. In Lithuania, the initiative has been coordinated by the Bank of Lithuania for the fifth consecutive year, with this year’s themes focusing on investor resilience, fraud in the digital environment and its prevention.

These topics have not been chosen by chance. An increasing number of Lithuanian residents are becoming interested in investing, but another trend is also emerging – greater confidence in one's knowledge does not necessarily protect against poor decisions. Dr. Viktorija Dičpinigaitienė, Head of the Financial Literacy Centre at the Bank of Lithuania, emphasizes that even the rational desire to earn more can be exploited by fraudsters.

“Risk itself is not a problem – it is part of investing. However, data shows that the risk of fraud does not necessarily stem from a person's weaknesses. Completely rational goals can also be used for manipulation – the desire to invest, achieve higher returns or avoid missing a good opportunity. Therefore, a resilient investor is not someone who always knows the answer. It is someone who knows when not to make a decision yet and how to verify information before making it,” says V. Dičpinigaitienė.

Miglė Grybinienė, Head of Marketing at PROFITUS, which has joined the initiative, agrees that investor education has been one of the platform's priorities for several years.

“We devote considerable attention to investor education in our daily activities, so we are pleased to contribute to World Investor Week once again. Today, getting started with investing is very easy, but that does not make the decision itself any simpler. Investors need to understand where they are allocating their money, be able to assess risks and distinguish information they can trust. We believe that a healthy investment culture develops not only as more people begin investing – it is equally important that they increasingly understand and can justify their choices,” says M. Grybinienė.

From Investment Psychology to Fraud

During World Investor Week, PROFITUS will invite investors to explore a range of relevant topics. One of them is investment fraud. On October 8 at 5:30 PM, the Smart Investing Forum will be broadcast live on the PROFITUS YouTube channel. During the event, Mindaugas Petrauskas, a lawyer and expert in financial crime investigation and anti-money laundering (AML), will discuss the phenomenon of investment fraud and the preventive measures implemented by financial institutions.

At the forum, M. Grybinienė will also present how the profile of Lithuanian investors is changing.

However, according to M. Grybinienė, investor education is not limited to the ability to recognize fraudsters. Understanding what influences our own financial decisions is equally important.

“One episode of the PROFITUS-sponsored podcast ‘Pokalbiai apie pinigus’ (Conversations About Money) is also dedicated to this topic. In the episode, investor Lukas Macijauskas discusses investment psychology, the influence of fear and greed on decision-making, and mistakes that can cost investors money. The conversation also covers lessons from the 2008 financial crisis, realistic return expectations, real estate prices in Lithuania, the bond market and the risk of an artificial intelligence bubble,” she explains.

Former Lithuanian national basketball team player Mantas Kalnietis will also share his relationship with money and investing in another episode of “Pokalbiai apie pinigus”. The episode will be released on the “Pokalbiai apie pinigus” YouTube channel on October 8.

PROFITUS will also discuss investment-related topics with the younger generation. On October 9, representatives of the platform will meet with children and their parents from the Sostinės Basketball School (SKM) community to discuss crowdfunding and how it works.

The themes of World Investor Week will also be featured on PROFITUS social media channels. Practical advice on how to recognize investment fraud will be shared, while the platform's ambassadors will talk about their experiences with fraudsters or attempts to deceive them into handing over money.

More information can be found here: https://www.lb.lt/lt/tarptautine-investuotoju-savaite-2026

Article link: https://www.15min.lt/verslas/naujiena/bns-spaudos-centras/539392