The financial planning program in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is growing and thriving. The program, a concentration in the ACE undergraduate major, has doubled in size over the past eight years, and now serves 175 students who are preparing for careers as financial advisors.

A course at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign designed to empower women both financially and in the workforce is now being offered to the public. Register online  for “Women, Money & Power” before the eight-week, online course kicks off on Wednesday, March 20. 

URBANA, Ill. – Schwab Advisor Services in partnership with the Charles Schwab Foundation has made a generous donation to the Women, Power, and Money Program for Financial Planning at the University of Illinois. The grant provides funding to create and sustain the infrastructure needs of the program until 2025. The funds will contribute to enhancing the course, creating a public-facing lecture series, building course materials, and bringing in guest speakers.

URBANA, Ill. – Financial inclusion is key to improving economic and social welfare, reducing inequality, and promoting economic growth. Globally, 1.7 billion people have limited access to financial services, especially in the developing world. As governments and NGOs work to strengthen financial resilience, digital technology has become a crucial component.

URBANA, Ill. – Global financial markets collapsed in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the world. But weeks earlier, soybean futures had already started providing an early warning sign of troubles ahead. Soybean futures were “the canary in the coal mine,” according to a team of agricultural economists from the University of Illinois, who studied soybean, corn, and wheat market trading in early 2020.

URBANA, Ill. – Financial technologies – fintech – are rapidly expanding and providing easier access to financial services worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the need for contactless transactions.

A new study from the University of Illinois evaluates fintech systems in 16 emerging markets. The researchers conclude digital technologies overall provide greater access to financial services, but some barriers to usage remain for vulnerable populations.

URBANA, Ill. ­– For a decade, agricultural professionals in Illinois and beyond have had a trusted online source for daily analysis and information. farmdocDAILY, part of the University of Illinois farmdoc project, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary on March 17.

And to mark this occasion, the farmdoc team will be releasing its list of the all-time top 20 articles.

URBANA, Ill. – Financial planning students get to hone their skills and gain valuable experience in real-life simulations through industry competitions.

A team of three University of Illinois students placed in the top eight of the national Financial Planning Association Challenge this fall. Paulina Cylwik, Maureen McCullough, and Ethan Krumwiede, seniors in agriculture and consumer economics with concentrations in financial planning, represented the university and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) in the competition.

URBANA, Ill. – A group of applied economists launched a new research center this week at the University of Illinois. The Center for the Economics of Sustainability (CEOS) is made up of agricultural, development, environmental, financial, and consumer economists who collaborate with stakeholders and researchers from many other disciplines. Together, they study how best to manage natural resources and how to design policies and markets to achieve sustainability at the lowest possible cost.