October 1^st, 2018 Organization

Québec City – The 2018 AMF Index of Financial Awareness (AMF Index) was released today as part of the launch of World Investor Week This link will open in a new window. The AMF Index assesses the perceived usefulness and rate of adoption of 40 financial behaviours in categories related to personal finances management, insurance, investment, dealing with a representative (advisor), retirement planning and fraud prevention. This year’s survey reveals that, although Quebeckers are adopting essentially the same knowledgeable behaviours for personal finance as two years ago, they still need to reinforce many of those behaviours. The overall result of the 2018 AMF Index (60.6%) nonetheless reflects a slight upward trend compared to the initial survey, conducted in 2012 (58.5%), and is statistically stable compared to the survey results from 2014 (60.1%) and 2016 (61.2%).

“In accordance with its mission and its 2017-2018 Strategic Plan (pdf - 4 MB)This link will open in a new windowUpdated on May 29, 20172017-2020 Strategic Plan, the Autorité des marchés financiers (the “AMF” or the “Authority”) places great importance on the financial education of Quebeckers, especially young people and seniors, who are more vulnerable clients,” said Louis Morisset, AMF President and CEO. “These results confirm the need for us to continue our awareness-raising efforts in order to encourage Quebeckers to adopt knowledgeable behaviours as consumers of financial products and services.”

2018 Results

This year again, the main factors with a significant impact on the AMF Index are the holding of financial products and the use of financial services, age, education level, annual income and having a business relationship with a representative (advisor). A comparison of the 2018 results with those from the initial survey reveals that Quebeckers have increased their financial awareness in the areas of credit management, automobile insurance and retirement planning. Only one area, home insurance, was marked by a decrease in awareness between 2012 and 2018. One of the new pieces of information collected this year is respondents’ interest in learning more about cryptocurrencies (18% of all respondents and 24% of respondents between the ages of 18 and 34).

Other results show that further efforts are needed to raise Quebeckers’ awareness of the importance of adopting new finance management habits. For example, less than 50% of the investors surveyed indicated that they read the information accompanying their investments and barely 16% were able to recognize the three main signs of potential fraud. For more information, refer to the comprehensive AMF Index results on the AMF website.

AMF Index

The AMF Index is a survey developed to provide a picture of Quebeckers’ habits in the areas of personal finances management, fraud prevention, retirement planning, investment, insurance and dealing with a representative (advisor). The latest survey was conducted by the research firm Léger among 1,503 individuals responsible for managing their household’s finances. The results of the survey are used by the AMF to, in particular, establish and prioritize certain awareness initiatives so as to help consumers of financial products and services make better-informed decisions. The index is provided for reference and gives a detailed picture of the situation in Québec.

World Investor Week

The AMF is once again actively contributing to the initiative launched last year by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and joining more than 80 jurisdictions around the world in marking the 2nd edition of World Investor Week This link will open in a new window. The aim of World Investor Week is to promote investor education and protection and highlight the various initiatives of securities regulators that carry out awareness activities in this area.

The Autorité des marchés financiers is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec’s financial sector.

– 30 –

Information:

Media only:
Sylvain Théberge: 514-940-2176

Information Centre:
Québec City: 418-525-0337
Montréal: 514-395-0337
Toll-free: 1-877-525-0337
Twitter:@lautorite This link will open in a new window
LinkedIn : Autorité des marchés financiers (Québec)This link will open in a new window