Singapore, 1 June 2022: After more than a month of deliberating, the MAIA judges and team are proud to announce the winners, runners-up and special commendations for The MAIAs 2022. Out of 150 entries, 24 groups and individuals yesterday received special recognition. Awarded projects ranged from ‘How to be an Investor’ training for youngsters to grassroots teacher training modules, from ground-breaking academic research to interactive programmes to empower migrant workers and from a global anti-scam initiative to a good old-fashioned, real-world museum.

Judges shared particularly positive feedback on a handful of winning entries, including:

• Best Academic Paper, by Professor Annamaria Lusardi and team, with judge Professor Dave Fernandez of Singapore Management University commenting, “this landmark study, across 33 countries, should end the debate once and for all, proving that financial education demonstrably affects financial knowledge and downstream behaviours.”
• Best Non-profit in a Developing Economy: ‘Cha-Ching’ by the Prudential Foundation, with judge Patrick Jenkins, deputy editor of the Financial Times, commenting “this is a powerhouse entry and in fact the highest-scoring of the whole competition – it’s the creative idea behind this and the incredible reach that stand out for me.”
• Best Influencer: Teen Rishi Vamdatt for his ‘Easy Peasy Finance’ YouTube cartoons for children, with MAIAs founder Michael Gilmore saying, “what’s so wonderful about this is that Rishi is meeting people where they are, telling them – this is the information you need, I understand you because you’re like me.”

On the awards overall, Gilmore commented, “The diversity across our awardees’ audiences and end-goals is testament to just how much great work is going on. And to see winners from so many countries – from Peru to Malaysia, from Finland to Australia – is such a cause for celebration. However, there is much work to be done yet to build a powerful, global money inclusion ecosystem, and that’s a journey we at the MAIAs are on: to join the dots, to help spread great ideas – to Make Money Better.”

The MAIAs judges congratulate all awardees for their hard work, persistence, innovation, and commitment to changing the world.

Please visit this link to view the list of award recipients.