The Financial Times is hosting a charity auction where individuals can bid for lunch with prominent FT journalists, with proceeds benefiting the FT's Financial Literacy and Inclusion Campaign (FLIC). The auction, which concludes on January 29, aims to combat financial illiteracy, a significant issue given that 94% of Britons report learning little to nothing about money in school. The charity was established last year to provide financial education to those most in need in the UK and internationally.
Participants can bid for lunches with journalists such as Dan McCrum at The Colony Grill, Stephen Bush at Turnips, Katie Martin at Il Pampero, Gideon Rachman at The Dining Room, Chris Giles at Hawksmoor, and Robin Wigglesworth at St Pancras by Searcy’s Brasserie. Some high-profile lunches, including dinner with FT editor Roula Khalaf at Alain Ducasse and lunch with Gillian Tett at Hélène Darroze or Zaytinya, have already been sold. The restaurants involved, located in London and New York, are donating the meals, ensuring that all funds raised go directly to FLIC.
The auction is part of a broader effort by the FT to support financial literacy. The charity, which celebrates its fifth anniversary this year, has made significant strides, including distributing 42 hours of lesson plans to over 1,000 UK secondary schools and influencing the government to make foundational finance obligatory in English primary and secondary curricula. An adult education program with 70 short-form videos is also freely available on ftflic.com. The charity's work, including pro bono events and resource creation, has shown positive impacts, such as increasing confidence in money management among attendees of a recent event from 9% to 67%. Readers have contributed significantly, with the seasonal appeal exceeding its target of $500,000, raising $504,099, and the lunch auction contributing an additional $105,565.
Other notable journalists available for lunch through similar past or ongoing auctions for FLIC include Martin Wolf, the FT’s chief economics commentator, at Jikoni, and Claer Barrett, the FT’s consumer editor. Editor Roula Khalaf, Gillian Tett, John Burn-Murdoch, Jemima Kelly, Simon Kuper, and Tim Harford have also been featured in these fundraising efforts. The auctions are a recurring initiative to support FLIC's mission of providing foundational financial education to everyone, including expanding school programs, adult education, and international partnerships.
