Children's financial literacy is developed practically

On the crowdfunding platform "Profitus", from April, the opportunity to invest in real estate also became available for minors. During this period, 120 young people under the age of 18 have already invested in the platform, with a total investment of 25 thousand euros.

"Usually these are children of our clients, or relatives of investing adults - nieces or nephews. The money allocated for investment is twofold. Some invest in children's savings. Of course, with the consent of the children, how much I had to communicate with customers. Other parents create an account for their child on the platform as an alternative to a bank account. Their goal is long-term savings for children's future, for example, for studies. Since interest in banks is minimal or zero, options are being sought to protect long-term savings from inflation," says Monika Lenčickaitė, Marketing Manager of Profitus.

Parents investing in children's savings claim that they want to introduce their children to the possibility of investment, and it is quite effective to do this by actually investing in children's savings. Children are then interested in how their savings are "successfully" growing, when choosing which real estate object to invest in, they talk about the possibilities and disadvantages of higher and lower interest rates, and the risks of investing.

"On our platform, children's accounts are created by parents, there are clear security requirements, and basically, the process is very similar to opening a bank account. If the parents want to allow the child to invest on his own, that is, to choose the riskiness of the objects in which he will invest, and to distribute the money in his account, the written consent of the parents is required," explains the representative of Profitus.

As for taxes, in Lithuania, only interest exceeding 500 euros per year is taxed, and in order to earn that much, you need to invest more than 6-7 thousand euros. The most common amount of one investment is from 100 to 500 euros, similar amounts make up the "investment portfolio" of children.