The Edufinet financial education project, promoted by Fundación Unicaja and Unicaja, held the final of its 17th Financial Olympics for young people in Málaga on Friday, with Damaris Cárdenas, a student at IES Bellavista in Seville, emerging as the winner. The competition brought together participants from across Spain, following a process involving nearly 800 students, with the support of 46 teachers.
The final of the competition took place at the Edufinet Centre for Financial Education in Málaga and was, once again, supported by Funcas Educa. During the event, the five finalists – from schools in Almería, Granada, Seville and Valladolid – presented the conclusions of their projects to the jury, focusing on investment decision-making in a simulated practical case study.
Alongside the winner, second and third prizes went to Inés Segura, from IES Maestro Gallardo in Los Corrales (Seville), and Silvia Martín, from Colegio Jesús y María in Valladolid, respectively. In addition, the jury awarded two runners-up prizes to Alejandra Luque, from SEK Alborán School in El Ejido (Almería), and to Natalia Ortega, from IES Severo Ochoa in Granada.
As for the prizes, the winner received an iPhone 16; the runner-up, a 64 GB iPad; and the third-place winner, an Amazfit 4 smartwatch. Furthermore, the teachers and schools of the winning students were also recognised for their involvement in the development of the projects.
The aim of this competition is to help young people acquire financial knowledge and skills to achieve financial independence. The competition forms part of the 17th Conference on Financial Education for Young People, one of Edufinet’s key initiatives in this field. So far this academic year, these conferences have reached nearly 22,000 secondary school, baccalaureate and vocational training students from 40 provinces, 15 regions and one autonomous city, through 793 training sessions.
Competition and composition of the jury
In the initial phase, participants had to solve a practical case via the online platform olimpiadas.edufinet.com, which presented various investment options for a given budget, with the aim of maximising returns over a three-year period.
In addition, the students had to produce a report justifying their financial decisions and had to answer some questions related to the exercise. The process was completed by taking part in the ‘Maxi Bonus’ quiz, which allowed them to improve their final score by up to 15%.
In the final stage held this Friday, the students presented their proposals to a jury, which highlighted both the high level of participation and the high standard of the work submitted. The jury was composed of: José Antonio Díaz, member of the Edufinet Project; Gerardo Lerones, head of Social Activities at Fundación Unicaja; Mª Eugenia Martínez-Oña, head of Financial Education at Unicaja; Antonio Martín, manager of Funcas; Adolfo Gil, head of the Bank of Spain’s branch in Málaga; Isabel Rodríguez, general technical secretary of the Málaga Association of Economists; and Manuel Ángel Fernández, head of the Econospérides Institute.
Representing the universities collaborating with Edufinet, the jury also included Ana José Cisneros, dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Studies at the University of Málaga (UMA); Francisca García, lecturer at the National Distance Education University (UNED) in Málaga; and José Antonio Fernández, lecturer at the University of Córdoba (UCO). Unicaja Baloncesto player Manu Trujillo also took part in the awards ceremony.
Edufinet: 20 years of experience
Over its 20-year history, the Edufinet Project has established itself as one of Spain’s pioneering and leading programmes in financial education and inclusion, thanks to its commitment to society and the implementation of its sustainability policy. This ongoing work has resulted in an extensive network of partners, comprising around ten business institutions and organisations and 18 universities.
