Kuwait Bourse launches 'Bell 3' to reinforce public awareness of investment options and risks

- Nasser Al-Sanousi: The value of market development is realized when people understand the available options and how to deal with them.

- Saad Al-Nahid: Learning is more beneficial when students discuss real-world experiences with experts.

- Mai Al-Awaid: Financial literacy begins with an individual’s understanding of their obligations and their ability to meet them.

- Janet Touq: We look forward to continuing the development of clear and practical educational content.

- Sara Abdul Samad: “The Bell” offers an opportunity to explain the fundamentals of investment, as well as how to evaluate opportunities and risks.

- Talal Al-Khamis: The value of content lies in people’s ability to understand it and benefit from it.

- Fawwaz Darwish: The diversity of investment tools must be accompanied by awareness of their characteristics and risks.

The Kuwait Stock Exchange launched the third edition of the “The Bell” financial literacy initiative, featuring an awareness program running throughout October that brings together six professional, academic, and investment entities. The initiative aims to make investment concepts more accessible to the public and help individuals understand their financial options and associated risks, through interactive sessions, workshops, and digital content that connects knowledge with practical life needs and developments in the Kuwaiti capital market.

This new edition reaffirms the Exchange’s commitment to ensuring that market development and the expansion of investment options are accompanied by continuous efforts to raise public awareness. With the growing diversity of products and ease of access to information, there is a clear need for reliable content that clearly explains concepts and helps investors ask the right questions, understand what aligns with their goals and capabilities, and avoid complexity or reliance on incomplete information.

The initiative is organized in collaboration with the CFA Institute, the Kuwait Society of Chartered Financial Analysts, InvestGB, Kuwait University, Kuwait Credit Information Network (CINET), and the Union of Investment Companies (UIC). This diversity allows for the integration of investment expertise, university education, and corporate experiences to deliver a program targeting investors, students, and young professionals, providing each group with knowledge tailored to their specific needs.

The program also coincides with the tenth edition of “Global Investor Week,” led by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) to enhance investor awareness and protection, and supported by the World Federation of Exchanges through its “Ring the Bell for Financial Literacy” campaign.

Emphasizing the importance of linking market development with investor knowledge, Nasser Al-Sanousi, Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications at the Exchange, stated: “The Kuwait Stock Exchange believes that knowledge is the foundation of informed investing, and that the value of market development is fully realized when people understand the options available and how to manage them. Through this initiative, the Exchange brings this knowledge closer to the public using clear language and reliable content, helping individuals understand opportunities and risks before making decisions. This is a continuous commitment translated into practical programs and partnerships that combine expertise with the ability to reach the community.”

Al-Sanousi added: “In the third edition, we link awareness more closely with market developments and the questions that matter most to investors, particularly young people. An investor needs to understand their options, a student needs to connect their studies with reality, and an entrepreneur needs to understand the requirements for growing their business. We work with our partners to provide content that serves these needs and encourages learning and questioning. Our aspiration is for financial knowledge to become part of people’s thinking and decision-making processes, and for the impact of the initiative to remain evident even after its activities conclude.”

Since its launch in 2024, the "Bell" initiative has built partnerships with more than 10 entities, and its programs have reached over 2,000 beneficiaries. Its presence has extended through the "Bell" podcast, which has garnered over two million views across four seasons, thereby expanding the reach of financial and investment content to an audience exceeding that of live event participants and enabling access to discussions and expertise at different times and places.

Efforts to support young talent included sponsoring the Financial Analyst Research Challenge, for which the Kuwait Stock Exchange is the first strategic partner in Kuwait. The challenge allowed approximately 100 university students to apply their knowledge to listed companies, training them in analyzing their business operations and financial data. The value of this experience lies in transferring learning from the classroom to a practice that requires research, analysis, and evidence-based opinion formation.

The third edition of "Bell" builds on the topics covered by the initiative in the previous two years, including money management, financial planning, digital financial services, sustainability, and artificial intelligence applications. The program covers investment fundamentals and market tracking, introduces exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and fixed-income markets, alongside credit culture and entrepreneurship. This progressive approach gives participants the opportunity to expand their knowledge and connect it to changing needs and market developments.

The program dedicates space to students through an interactive dialogue session bringing together Kuwait University and CINET to discuss financial and credit culture. The session also aims to foster an understanding of financial responsibilities at the individual level and to familiarize participants with the decisions accompanying company formation and expansion, thereby bringing capital market topics closer to the interests of youth and the aspirations of future entrepreneurs and business starters.

Regarding digital content, October sees the launch of the fifth season of the "Bell" podcast, in collaboration with "Financial Analysts" and "Invest GP." Its weekly episodes cover fundamental investment strategies and ways to track market developments, leveraging a dialogue format to clarify ideas and link them to their practical context. The podcast allows the audience to follow discussions and revisit them, supporting progressive learning and broadening the benefit derived from speakers' expertise.

Additionally, "Investment Companies" organizes workshops on exchange-traded funds and fixed-income markets. These topics introduce participants to diverse investment options, including funds that track the performance of a specific index, and tools such as bonds and sukuk, while clarifying their characteristics and associated risks. Presenting these topics in accessible language helps build an initial understanding that goes beyond knowing product names to recognizing the differences between them and the questions that should be asked about them.

To ensure continued benefit, the Exchange is collaborating with the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts to enrich the Exchange Academy with financial literacy materials and training modules that will remain available after October. The pathway also gives the public the opportunity to complete their learning at their own pace and schedule, linking live activities with a reference knowledge source, thus turning learning into a continuous process that extends beyond attending a single session or watching one episode.

The "Bell 3" program brings together a distinguished group of professional, academic, and investment institutions, enabling the utilization of diverse expertise to deliver knowledge-based and practical content aligned with the needs of investors, students, and market participants, while expanding the scope of financial literacy to include more specialized fields.

Dr. Saad Al-Nahid, Associate Professor of Finance at the College of Administrative Sciences, stated: “Our participation for the second year in ‘Al-Jaras’ (The Bell) offers an opportunity to bring financial and investment topics closer to students, linking them to their lives and aspirations. Learning becomes more beneficial when students discuss real-world experiences and pose their questions to experts. Through this participation, we aim to help them understand their financial responsibilities early on and broaden their knowledge of the business environment, thereby supporting their readiness for professional life and their ability to make informed decisions.”

CINET, the credit information provider and credit rating agency in Kuwait, continues this academic path by raising awareness about financial obligations and the importance of understanding borrowing and installment payments within personal money management.

Meera Al-Awais, CEO of the company, said: “Credit culture begins with an individual’s understanding of their obligations and their ability to meet them. With the proliferation of installment options, it is crucial for young people to recognize the impact of these decisions on their financial situations before proceeding. Through ‘Al-Jaras,’ we share our expertise to make these concepts more accessible to students and encourage responsible financial behavior. We believe that direct dialogue and examples drawn from daily life help transform information into a more solid understanding.”

The contribution of the CFA Institute is based on its expertise in investment education, particularly in fundamental analysis, investment valuation, portfolio management, and professional ethics, supporting the development of content that combines professional knowledge with ease of local application.

Janet Touq, Director of Partnerships and Client Solutions for the Middle East and North Africa at the Institute, said: “We and the Kuwait Stock Exchange share the conviction that financial literacy helps individuals understand their options and participate more consciously in the markets. For the third year, we are proud to participate in the initiative by combining the Institute’s expertise with the Stock Exchange’s knowledge of local market needs. We look forward to continuing to develop clear and practical educational content that enables a wider audience to build their knowledge and apply it to their financial decisions.”

The Stock Exchange’s partnership with the Institute spans three years. The Stock Exchange is the exclusive strategic partner of the Kuwait CFA Research Challenge, an annual international competition in financial analysis for listed companies, which allows students from public and private universities to compete by applying their academic knowledge to real-world cases and honing their practical skills.

On another note, the Stock Exchange’s partnership with the CFA Society Kuwait, dating back to 2018, provides a foundation for collaboration in delivering educational content, programs, and workshops. The Society is participating this year in continuing the investment dialogue through the ‘Al-Jaras’ podcast.

Sarah Abdul Samad, President of the Society, said: “As the market evolves, investors need knowledge that helps them understand what is changing and what it means for their decisions. Through our partnership with the Kuwait Stock Exchange, we work to deliver this knowledge in a clear and accessible manner. We see the Al-Jaras initiative as an opportunity to bring experts’ experiences into useful discussions that explain the foundations of investment and help assess opportunities and risks with greater understanding.”

Additionally, the participation of Invest GP, the investment arm of Gulf Bank, adds practical expertise in investment, asset, and wealth management to the topics of the podcast’s fifth season.

Talal Al-Khamis, Head of Equities and Fixed Income at the company, said: “We are pleased to continue our collaboration with the Kuwait Stock Exchange on the Bell Podcast, sharing our expertise in discussions that help the public understand investing and follow market developments. We strive to ensure that ideas are clear and relevant to listeners’ needs, whether they are at the beginning of their investment journey or seeking to deepen their knowledge. The true value of content lies in people’s ability to understand it and benefit from it when considering their options.”

Fadwa Darwish, Secretary-General of the Union, said: “We are proud to continue our participation in the Bell initiative for the second year, supporting the Kuwait Stock Exchange’s efforts to consolidate financial and investment culture. This year, we focus on topics that align with market developments, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and fixed-income instruments. The Union believes that the diversity of investment tools must be accompanied by greater awareness of their characteristics, risks, and opportunities, enabling investors to make more informed investment decisions.”

She added, “The Bell initiative also represents an important model of institutional cooperation in disseminating investment knowledge and reaching a broader segment of society. It simultaneously provides us with the opportunity for direct engagement with the public, listening to their questions, and clarifying investment topics of interest to them.”

The Bell initiative falls under the Kuwait Stock Exchange’s corporate sustainability strategy, which includes supporting education, skills development, and building partnerships with community impact. It also aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, specifically Goal 4 on Quality Education and Goal 17 on Partnerships for the Goals. The program translates this direction into a collaborative effort where roles are distributed according to each party’s expertise, combining public reach, content quality, and continuous learning.

Kuwait Stock Exchange continues to reinforce its role in disseminating investment knowledge and linking capital market development to societal needs. The third edition of the Bell initiative offers multiple learning pathways that combine dialogue, practical experience, and digital content, providing investors, students, and entrepreneurs with the opportunity to explore topics that affect their decisions and aspirations, as part of an ongoing institutional effort that promotes informed and responsible participation in financial and investment life.