September 23, 2013 Organization

Montréal - The Autorité des marchés financiers (the AMF) is introducing several new initiatives in various media to make Quebeckers more aware of the importance of developing good financial habits, asking the right questions and taking appropriate action when making personal finance decisions.

"These initiatives are important to the AMF. They're at the heart of our 2012-2017 strategic plan, which aims to make the AMF the top-of-mind resource for consumers of financial products and services in Québec," said Louis Morisset, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Since informed consumers are better protected, we intend to increase this type of initiative in order to make Quebeckers more financially savvy," he concluded.

Consumers in the spotlight
A series of 20 short videos showing actual consumers of financial products and services answering questions about their personal finance is currently being aired in French on Radio-Canada during the 10 p.m. newscast and on RDI. The "Les bonnes questions" video clips, which are sixty seconds long, encourage consumers to take advantage of the various resources available on the AMF's website and help make them aware of the importance of dealing with a certified professional. The lesbonnesquestions.ca page and a Facebook presence with the Les bonnes questions This link will open in a new window page are also part of this initiative.

Increase investment and retirement planning knowledge
To make Quebeckers more informed investors, the AMF is also expanding its presence in magazines and newspapers of the Gesca and Transcontinental groups, including La Presse, Le Soleil, Coup de pouce and Les Affaires. The items mainly cover investment knowledge, retirement planning and the relationship between consumers and their adviser.

These three themes-investments, retirement planning and relationship with a representative-were chosen to fill gaps in these areas uncovered using the AMF Index (pdf - 2 MB)This link will open in a new windowUpdated on October 16, 2012Ce rapport présente les résultats d’une enquête de l'Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) sur la connaissance et l'adoption de comportements vigilants par les consommateurs québécois., a tool the AMF adopted in 2012 which measures the financial knowledge of Quebeckers and their adoption of knowledgeable behaviours. The index shows, for example, that consumers scored less than 50% for the adoption of knowledgeable behaviours regarding the topics "relationship with a representative" and "retirement planning." The survey also showed that consumers who have a relationship with a representative are much more likely to adopt knowledgeable behaviours. These new initiatives highlight several questions they should ask.

These initiatives are part of Investor Education Month (October) and Financial Literacy Month (November). They have been made possible by the financial support of the Education and Good Governance Fund.

The Autorité des marchés financiers (the AMF) is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec's financial sector.

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To view the first capsule "Les bonnes questions" [in French only], visit: lesbonnesquestions.ca.

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
www.lautorite.qc.ca
Twitter: @lautorite This link will open in a new window