At 14 years old, he is the youngest banker in the world
He is only 14 years old, but José Adolfo Quisocala Condori can already boast of being at the head of his own bank!
“Banco Del Estudiante” (The Student’s bank) was born in his youthful mind. To say that he is an early entrepreneur would be a euphemism. Today, he teaches people of his age how to save money and manage a budget… while making a good deed for the environment. Here’s how.
7 years old and already visionary
“Banco Del Estudiante” (The Student’s bank) was born in his youthful mind. To say that he is an early entrepreneur would be a euphemism. Today, he teaches people of his age how to save money and manage a budget… while making a good deed for the environment. At the age of 7, José had already noticed in the playground that many students were wasting what little money they had in candy or toys. These children were the luckiest because those who had to work to earn money could not attend all the classes. Thus was born Banco Del Estudiante.
Today, Banco Del Estudiante holds more than 2000 customers. All between the ages of 10 and 18, these children enter a world usually reserved for young adults. Defining itself as a social organization that promotes financial education and young entrepreneurship, the bank teaches how to better manage daily life budget and improve quality of life. Among all the services offered are loans and microinsurance.
Behind this ingenious idea, however, lies a more disillusioned reality: the poverty and precariousness that strikes Peru so hard.
“One of the main reasons children work every day and do not go to school is because their families do not have enough money. So I wanted to teach them how to save money. » – José for The Guardian
Between finance and ecology, there is only one step left
But launching his own bank wasn’t enough for José. And he has thought of everything. Why not make it an ecological bank? How can we generate money while cleaning up the planet? Recycling becomes an obvious alternative in a country where waste collection systems are not sufficient to offset the pollution produced by the astronomical quantities of waste.
And so in order to open an account at Banco Del Estudiante, you must provide at least 5 kg of recyclable waste, then at least 1 kg each month thereafter. All these “payments” are sold to specialized companies and the revenues collected transferred to the beneficiary’s account.
“At first, my teachers thought I was crazy and that a child could not undertake this type of project. » – José for CNews
Sources: The Guardian, CNews, Banco Del Estudiante
credit photos: © Banco Del Estudiante, Photo by James Thornton on Unsplash
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