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Franklin Templeton,one of the largest global fund houses in the countryannounced its collaboration withFinX, a leading edtech platform in the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) skilling ecosystem, to launch India’s first National Mutual Fund Olympiad (NMFO) 2025 — the first large-scale platform dedicated to promoting financial literacy, investment awareness, and employability readiness among college students.

NMFO aims to reach more than 10,000 students across 500 colleges in over 20 states, including several premier institutions. Nearly 50% of participants are expected from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities,signaling the deepening spread of financial literacy beyond metros.

The National Mutual Fund Olympiad is a knowledge-driven competition designed to enhance financial literacy, promote awareness about mutual funds and asset management, and equip students with practical money management and investment skills.

Participants will be evaluated on their understanding of Mutual Funds, ETFs, PMS, AIFs, and SIFs, integrating conceptual learning with real-world application. The program also aims to benchmark financial knowledge, foster employability, and connect students with career pathways in the asset management industry.

Participants will gain access to Franklin Templeton Academy’s online learning platform, which features a wide range of on-demand courses, webcasts, videos, and topic papers, as well as FinX’s Employment Exchange, certifications, internships, and enhanced career visibility with leading BFSI institutions.

Bridging India’s Financial Literacy and Employability Gap

Despite India’s mutual fund industry growing over 100X in the past 25 years, financial literacy remains limited — with only 27% of adults financially aware, as perOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and RBI estimates. Simultaneously, the India Skills Report 2024 indicates that less than 45% of graduates are job-ready for BFSI & Emerging Technologies roles.

The Olympiad seeks to bridge this dual gap by integrating financial education, career readiness, and industry certification — helping students transition from classroom learning to capital market understanding.

Speaking on theNMFO launch, Avinash Satwalekar, President, Franklin TempletonIndia, said,“At Franklin Templeton, we have always believed in empowering investors with financial awareness to help them achieve their long-term goals. We were the first to establish atraining academy in 2005 called Franklin Templeton Academy dedicated to equipping distributors with knowledge to help investors make informed investment decisions. We are immensely proud to lead an initiative like the National Mutual Fund Olympiad which not only helps the youth build financial literacy but also gives them the opportunity to explore a career path in the financial services space.”

He added, “With over 50% of new investors in the mutual fund industry in recent years being millennials, promoting financial literacy becomes even more important. This first-of-its-kind initiative in India reflects our collective commitment towards fostering financial literacy among the younger generation. We are proud to champion a program that aligns with our values of nurturing young talent and advancing financial education.”

Commenting on this development, Himanshu Vyapak, CEO of FinX, said:“The National Mutual Fund Olympiad is more than a competition — it’s a movement to make financial literacy mainstream. Our vision is to nurture a generation of financially aware, career-ready youth who can make informed money decisions and contribute to India’s economic growth. With the support of an industry leader like Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, we are connecting classrooms to capital markets. By engaging 10,000+ students across India, we aim to build a pipeline of financially aware and career-ready youth for the BFSI sector.”
 

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