Hong Kong children have been rated “B-” in financial literacy, indicating they generally possess basic financial knowledge and demonstrate proper spending attitudes.

The findings come from a survey conducted by the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, which polled more than 2,000 primary four to secondary three students in May and June.

The survey was the third of its kind, following earlier editions in 2020 and 2023.

Half of the respondents said they now keep records of their savings and expenses, marking a 15 percent increase compared to 2020.

Eighty-seven percent of the students polled reported being in the habit of saving, consistent with previous survey results.

For the first time, the survey included a section to assess students’ awareness of cybersecurity and fraud prevention.

While most students rated themselves highly in their ability to identify fraud, over 190 reported falling victim to scams, with average losses amounting to HK$1,100.

The highest financial loss in a single case reached HK$10,000, involving a student who was misled by a “zero-risk, high return” fraudulent investment opportunity.

The institute’s president, Edward Au, said the rating was “B” in 2020, and stressed the need for young people to enhance their knowledge of financial security.

“When they do the self-evaluation, they believe they are fine, but based on the observations and those that have lost money because of fraudulent websites and also password control, we see that this is really a concern,” he said.

He said as e-payments are becoming the norm and create potential risks like fraud, it is getting more vital to include financial education at an early stage.

“We hope by having this survey result, we can cooperate more closely with schools, with families and governments to enhance or strengthen the different education channels for students, because I think we can't avoid that. This has actually become a part of our life,” he said.

Moses Wong, vice principal of S.K.H. St. Peter's Primary School, also supports the idea that financial education should begin early.

“We have various kinds of activities to give students a real taste of how to manage their own money.... We’d like to have a detailed look at the report so we can adjust the curriculum and also the activities that we hold for the students,” he said.