Savings is something all of us do, or hope to do. Saving money takes discipline and some sacrifices. Saving is one of the most basic, and most repeated bits of financial advice out there. Saving provides financial security, gives you the freedom to know that when you need money, it is available and lets you take calculated risks. Also, depositors who save money can help in the economic growth of the country.
Today and in some countries, yesterday World Savings Day was celebrated. Every year on October 31st, the World Savings and Retail Banking Institute (WSBI) and its members across the world celebrate World Savings Day. World Savings Day was established on October 31, 1934, during the 1st International Savings Bank Congress or the World Society of Savings Banks in Milan, Italy. The Italian Professor Filippo Ravizza declared this day as International Saving Day on the last day of the congress and in the resolutions of the Thrift Congress, it was decided that World Thrift Day should be a day devoted to the promotion of savings all over the world. As people were not sure about saving after the First World War, the idea was to make people aware of the significance of saving money. In their efforts to promote thrift, the savings banks also worked with the support of the schools, and the clergy, as well as cultural, sports, professional, and women’s associations. As people were not sure about saving after the First World War, the idea was to make people aware of the significance of saving money.
Representatives of 29 countries wanted to bring to mind the thought of saving to the worldwide public and its relevance to the economy and the individual. World Savings Day is usually held on October 30 except in countries where this day is a public holiday since the idea is for the banks to be open so that people can transfer their savings into their accounts.
After World War II, World Thrift Day continued and reached the peak of its popularity in the years between 1955 and 1970. It practically became a veritable tradition in certain countries. In Austria, for instance, the official mascot of saving, the Sparefroh or the Happy Saver, reached a higher degree of brand awareness than the republic’s President and even a street was named after the mascot. In the 1970s, the Sparefroh Journal, an educational magazine for younger people, reached a circulation of 400,000 copies. In Germany World Savings Day is held on the last business day before October 31 since this is a public holiday in some states. In India, October 31 is the day the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated and so the day is celebrated on October 30.
For more than 90 years, this day has aimed to promote saving money and to raise awareness of the important role that savings and retail banking play within the general financial system. World Savings Day also highlights the ethical characteristics that banking institutions need to have to be responsible partners in communities, and serve households, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and local authorities. Today the focus of the banks that organise World Savings Day is on developing countries, where many people are unbanked. Savings banks play an important role in enhancing savings in these countries with campaigns and initiatives such as working with non-governmental organisations to double the number of savings accounts held by the poor.
To commemorate this day, go and save some money. Either drop by your bank or make an online transfer to your savings account.
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