Lack of education holds back wannabe investors

A lack of education is the major reason why more people are not investing in the stock market, according to research by MSN Money.

58% of people surveyed on MSN Money said a lack of knowledge about stocks and shares was stopping them from investing, while only 38% said it was due to a lack of money and just 4% said it was down to time constraints.

Simon Ward, MSN Money's Senior Editor, commented: "Many people might be thinking about dipping a toe in the water of investing in stocks and shares, particularly given the paltry returns currently provided by conventional savings accounts. But our research suggests that they don't feel they have sufficient knowledge to get started."

To help people take the first steps into the world of investing, MSN Money is launching a series of webinars in conjunction with Saxo Bank, the provider of its online trading platform MSN Trader. These webinars will introduce the basic concepts of investing and trading online using the MSN Trader.

MSN Money will also be adding a further series of beginner's guides on subjects such as forex trading, CFDs and ETFs to its Investing section to help more people understand these areas.

Ward continues: "We are hoping this series of webinars and guides will demystify some of the jargon and presumed complexity that surrounds investing. Hopefully it will give people a grounding to go off and begin investing themselves without the fear that they don't know what they're doing."

You can find out more about the webinars and guides at money.uk.msn.com/investing/guides.