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According to This FINRA Foundation Quiz, 76% of Millennials Have Absolutely No Clue

Posted on by Adrienne Gonzalez

For real?

 


Now, I'm no accountant (as some of you like to remind me every. single. day) but I'd like to think I know a thing or two about money. Spending it, especially. Not to brag but I got 5 out of 5. Really, I'm not bragging, the questions aren't hard at all.

For example:

Suppose you have $100 in a savings account earning 2 percent interest a year. After five years, how much would you have?

I suck at math so if you asked me exactly how much, I'd probably get that wrong (the answer is $110.41 by the end of the fifth year, some of you mathletes may have figured that out before you even got to this sentence). But the quiz doesn't ask that. Here are your 4 options:

Well that's easy enough. ISN'T IT? Lord, don't tell me any adult got this question wrong ever or I've really lost faith in the world.

How about this one?

Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account is 1 percent a year and inflation is 2 percent a year. After one year, would the money in the account buy more than it does today, exactly the same or less than today?

Are you joking? 1 < 2, so even if you don't understand the basics of interest and inflation, you should at least understand that inflation will eat up your interest. Right? Please say right. Please?

The national average for correct responses is under 3. So, basically, we're screwed.

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