ING Sponsored Program Teaches Girls to Invest

With the help and guidance of Girls Inc. staff and ING employee volunteers, teams of girls ages 12-18 build and manage diversified, real-time portfolios as part of an integrative investment- and economic-literacy curriculum. The girls attend eight weekly financial-literacy lessons designed to focus them on the basics of saving, investing and financial planning and to familiarize them with the program guidelines.  

According to a press release, the girls invest in mutual funds for the first six months of the challenge, and after that time, they will be allowed to invest in individual securities. Over the course of the year, each girl will be responsible for identifying, researching and presenting at least one investing idea to the team.  

All portfolios will be managed and tracked using an online-trading platform that will allow the participants to track their performance, absolutely and relative to the other challenge teams. After three years, 75% of any gains in the portfolio will be paid by the ING Foundation to the girls in the form of Girls Inc. scholarships for post-secondary education; 25% of the gains will be given to the local Girls Inc. affiliate to support local programming.   

Rhonda Mims, president of the ING Foundation and senior vice president of ING’s Office of Corporate Responsibility and Multicultural Affairs, commented: “The earlier we can engage girls in the capital markets, the more likely we will be able to grow a generation of smart, empowered investors.”