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business Tuesday 30 augusT 2022

Liz Weston: Why is money so confusing?

By LIZ WESTON of NerdWal- Coambs, a certified finan- ciation for Financial Coun-
let cial planner and couples seling & Planning Educa-
Managing money is an es- therapist in Charlotte, North tion, a nonprofit foundation
sential life skill, yet most U.S. Carolina. that administers financial
adults would fail a financial You shouldn't feel stupid counseling credentials.
literacy test. Consider the for not understanding ev- "It's figuring out: What are
results of a survey meant to erything instantly, and no your values? What's impor-
measure financial literacy, one should make you feel tant to you? And how do
called the TIAA Institute- that way. However, learn- you make that work within
GFLEC Personal Finance ing can be more difficult if your own financial situa-
Index. On average, U.S. we encounter judgmental, tion?" DeLeon says.
adults correctly answered condescending or dog- MONEY IS EMOTIONAL
only 50% of its financial lit- matic people — which un- For many people, money
eracy questions in 2022. fortunately describes many evokes strong and often
In other words: If you find people who are fluent in negative emotions. For ex-
money confusing, you're personal finance lingo. ample, if you struggle with
far from alone. But the rea- "Many money experts, pro- managing your finances,
sons you're baffled may fessional or non-profession- you may be so embar-
have more to do with how al, can become varying rassed that you try to avoid
our brains work than how degrees of authoritarian: talking or even thinking
money does. Understand- 'Yes, I know what's best for about money. This undated file photo provided by NerdWallet shows Liz Weston,
ing some of the common you. This is what you should "That's what really stops a columnist for personal finance website NerdWallet.com.
barriers, along with strate- do,'" Coambs says. people from making mon- Associated Press
gies to cope, could help People with a rigid ap- ey progress," Coambs says.
you finally get a handle on proach to personal finance "They feel ashamed that ing your feelings about of making a mistake, not
your finances. may not understand the they don't know, and they money with supportive and having enough, or being
MONEY IS A NEW LAN- culture and life experienc- feel like they should know." compassionate people. scammed or misled.
GUAGE es that shaped you. They Painful early experiences That could include an em- "There are a lot of predators
You wouldn't expect to may insist you funnel every often shape our view of pathetic financial advisor, in this space, and knowing
carry on a fluent conver- possible dollar into paying money, says Coambs, au- a financial therapist or trust- who to trust is hard," DeLe-
sation in Madrid or Mexico off debt or saving for retire- thor of "The Healthy Love & ed, knowledgeable friends. on says.
City if you only knew a few ment, for instance, but you Money Way: How the Four "Action is predicated on Educating yourself is cru-
words of Spanish. Similarly, may feel it's important to Attachment Styles Impact feeling safe for many of us," cial. You can learn about
personal finance is loaded tithe to your church or sup- Your Financial Well-Being." Coambs says. "Until we feel personal finance basics
with terms, jargon and con- port your elderly parents. Listening to parents fight safe and accepted, we're from trusted sources, such
cepts that take a while to Rather than dictating how about money or suffering typically going to feel stuck as the Consumer Financial
learn. you should spend your financial hardship can be and stalled." Protection Bureau or Jump-
"Entering the world of mon- money, helpful advisors traumatic, leaving us con- MONEY IS COLLABORATIVE Start Coalition, which fo-
ey is like entering a whole meet people where they vinced that money is dan- Fear is another common cuses on financial literacy
new culture and learning are, says Rachael DeLeon, gerous or shameful. emotion people experi- for young people, DeLeon
a new language," says Ed interim director of the Asso- Coambs suggests discuss- ence around money: fear says.q

Walmart seeks to dismiss lawsuit by FTC over money transfers

By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO to order Walmart to return reach."
AP Retail Writer money to consumers and Walmart stores let shoppers
NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart to impose civil penalties on to transfer money using
filed a motion on Monday the company. three providers — Money-
to dismiss a lawsuit by the In a 41-page document, Gram, Ria Financial Servic-
Federal Trade Commission filed in U.S. District Court es, and Western Union Co.
in June that accused the for the Northern District Walmart, based in Ben-
nation's largest retailer of of Illinois Eastern Division, tonville, Arkansas, said it
allowing its money trans- Walmart laid out a num- has developed and imple-
fer services to be used ber of what it called legally mented a host of anti-fraud
by scam artists, calling it flawed claims, including measures—including cus-
an "egregious instance of that the agency lacked tomer warnings and em-
agency overreach." "constitutionally valid au- ployee trainings. Based on
In its lawsuit, the FTC alleged thority to sue for money The Walmart logo is displayed on a store in Springfield, Ill., May data available to Walmart,
that for years, Walmart or injunctive relief." It said 16, 2011. out of nearly 200 million
failed to properly secure that the FTC is trying to hold Associated Press money-transfer transac-
the money transfer services Walmart liable for the crimi- tions processed at its U.S.
offered at its stores, steal- nal actions of completely was aimed to go after tele- 5 of the FTC Act. namesake stores between
ing "hundreds of millions of unrelated third-party fraud- marketers and those who "To be clear, Walmart is 2015 and 2020, less than
dollars" from customers. The sters even as Walmart has actively help them but that now—and always has 0.08% were reportedly the
agency said Walmart didn't embraced a number of Walmart is neither. Walmart been—dedicated to its product of fraud, accord-
properly train its employ- steps to stop such scam- also took issue with the customers and shares the ing to the Walmart filing.
ees, failed to alert custom- ming. FTC's claim that Walmart FTC's goal of protecting And it said that some of
ers, and used procedures Walmart argued that the allegedly engaged in an customers from fraudsters," that reported fraud may
that allowed fraudsters to agency is trying to contort a "unfair" act or practice, or the Walmart filing said. "But not be fraud at all, making
cash out at its stores. The regulation called the Tele- any ongoing or imminent this lawsuit is an egregious the actual fraud rate even
FTC had asked the court marketing Sales Rule that misconduct under Section instance of agency over- smaller.q