Two South Africans met Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, who is also the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Advocate (UNSGSA) for Financial Health, during her recent visit to the country as she spreads the message of just how important financial solutions and products that improve financial health for households are. 

Through Her Majesty Queen Máxima, UNSGSA advocates globally for a more inclusive and sustainable financial ecosystem that supports financial stability and long-term prosperity for everyone. She believes technology will play an increasingly important role and that digital advancements in financial services create vast potential to drive financial health globally. 

During the three day visit, Her Majesty also met with Discovery Bank CEO, Hylton Kallner, and other guests at the Discovery Store in Sea Point, Cape Town as she focused on supporting the private sector, policymakers, and regulators to improve the financial health of all South Africans.

As part of the event, two South Africans, Jonathan and Latoya Cleary, met the Queen to discuss their hard-fought journey towards financial wellness. The couple, from Fourways, have experienced the benefits of financial education first hand courtesy of a partnership between Discovery Bank and Worth. Jonathan and Latoya completed a Worth course when it seemed they were going nowhere in life and backwards financially. “Our marriage was suffering. We were brought to our knees in humility for how low we had allowed ourselves to sink,” Jonathan said. 

The course, which the couple accessed through the Discovery app for an access fee of R5, was “literally a life saver,” Jonathan says. He adds: “At 40 years’ old, we learned things we should have learned 20 years ago.” He explains that they had needed to sell the family car and home school the children because of crushing debt. Since completing the course in January, the couple has made significant strides towards paying off their debt, informing the Queen that their ultimate goal is to buy a home for their family and become financially independent  – a goal they are now well on their way towards achieving. 

Discovery Bank clients can access a choice of two Worth online financial education courses – Wealthy Me™ or Wealthy Couples™ - in the bank’s app for an activation fee of R5 for a limited time period. When clients complete the course, they’re awarded 10,000 Vitality Money points.