Welcoming Kartini Day, Stockbit And Seedlings: Our Commitment To Mothers Is Very Clear

Photo: Doc. Stockbit

JAKARTA - More than 100 years ago, a book collection of Raden Ajeng Kartini's letters entitled "After Dark Comes Light" was published and inspires the wider community at that time, even today. Why not, the proud Indonesian woman figure who was born in Jepara on April 21, 1879 conveyed her vision and ideals regarding Indonesian women, especially regarding equality in the field of education.

Through writing, Kartini conveyed her visionary views even though in the standard at that time it was considered less common. Through writing, she struggles for women's literacy. Through his writings, he seems to keep reminding us of the unfinished homework in the field of gender equality.

For the Indonesian people, April 21 is not just a date that is repeated every year, but a collective awareness of things that can be done to make mothers more empowered, able to maximize their potential and be more capable of working in various fields of life, including in investment field.

"In the momentum of Kartini Day in 2022, we want to emphasize the company's commitment to increasing women's literacy regarding investment in the capital market. We believe that the involvement of women in the capital market will have a positive impact on the economy, both in the individual, family and national contexts," said Vivi Handoyo Lie, Head of Investment Research at Stockbit and Bibit.id, in a written statement, Thursday, April 21.

According to Vivi, Stockbit and Bibit believe that the young generation of Indonesia today needs to continue Kartini's ideals. Stockbit and Bibit also believe that literacy is the key that opens various doors of opportunity for women to become more empowered and can contribute more to the economy.

"That's why, we never tire of carrying out initiatives that aim to increase women's participation in the capital market," she added.

Vivi stated that education and financial literacy are the main focus of the company. The aim is to invite women to dare to start investing in the capital market and to prevent them from falling into the trap of fraudulent investments. Data from the Indonesian Central Securities Depository (KSEI) in March 2022 shows that the number of investors in the capital market has reached almost 8.4 million investors.

This figure is up 3.2 percent compared to the previous month, meanwhile when compared to the data at the end of 2021, the number of investors in the capital market has increased by more than 12 percent. However, the proportion of female investors is still in the range of 37 percent of all investors.

“In 2021, Stockbit and Bibit have held more than 100 free educational sessions to the public. In 2022, similar efforts will be continued and intensified by partnering with various organizations such as educational institutions, industry players in the financial services sector, mass media, professional communities, hobby communities, and non-profit organizations," explained Vivi.

Specifically regarding company initiatives related to inviting women to dare to invest in the capital market, Olivia Budiono who works as Product Marketing Lead said that collaboration with various relevant parties is something that needs to be done continuously.

“Surely Stockbit and Seed cannot walk alone. So far, we have collaborated with organizations that are concerned with issues related to women and have conducted various webinars, talk shows, and public events broadcast through social media involving female figures. The goal is to make women more confident to start investing and achieve their financial goals,” said Olivia.

In a study published recently by David Aristei and Manuela Gallo, it is said that one of the causes of the gender gap, especially related to financial literacy, is the lower level of self-confidence of women than men. Most women answered “don't know” to questions related to financial knowledge.

“For this reason, we want to once again reaffirm our commitment to Indonesian women. Through the various initiatives the company undertakes, we want Indonesian women to be more investment literate, increase their financial literacy, and become more confident to build a better financial future,” added Olivia.