Kids and money: From piggybanks to pocket money apps

From a small tin money box in the 1950s to a new pocket money feature in Westpac’s banking app, the way we encourage children to save and learn about money has evolved over the years.

But the same basic principles of financial literacy remain, and the bank is rolling out a new suite of features to help parents teach their kids about managing their money safely.

“As a father of two young boys myself, I know it’s incredibly important to ensure that young people are safe and secure in their spending and savings habits,” says Chris Brell, Westpac Acting Managing Director, Cash and Transactional Banking, in an interview with Wire. 

Children from eight years-old will now be able to access a Westpac debit card, giving them a sense of financial freedom while giving parents a range of controls and safety features. Those include:

- Daily payment and weekly spending limits. 

- Notifications to parent on account activity.

- Card controls.

- Blocking of certain high-risk transactions.*

For customers under 14 there is a default daily payment limit of $50 on selected online payments on the account and a $50 default weekly spending limit on the debit card. Parents can choose to apply, lift and change the controls to suit their child’s age and ability.

“These parental controls will give far greater transparency for parents with their children to make sure they're across all the money they're spending and all the opportunities to save,” Brell says.

More than half (53 per cent) of parents want their children to have a debit card to teach them about money, according to research commissioned by Westpac, with three-quarters responding that they are already teaching their kids about digital financial literacy. 

Equally, they’re concerned about being able to keep them safe and secure in the face of growing online threats.

A new pocket money feature enables parents to send one-off or recurring payments into their son or daughter’s Westpac Choice Youth or Bump account. 

“Westpac has been encouraging kids to learn about how to spend and save since the Bank of New South Wales introduced it’s first money box in the 1950s,” Brell says. “This has evolved to today, where we have the pocket money feature within the banking app.”

Yet while the majority of payments are now done digitally, Brell says cash still plays an important role in a child’s ability to learn about money. Kids can still get a buzz from receiving a crisp bank note for doing a chore, or when the tooth fairy pays a visit. 

Giving children access to their money both in cash and digitally can help their broader education around the value of money. 

“My top tip for improving financial literacy amongst our kids is to ensure there's an open and transparent conversation in the household around their spending and savings habits,” Brell says.

“Ensuring that there are boundaries and controls within those habits will go a long way to support them in their journey.” 

* For more information on the safety features available with Westpac’s Youth Debit Card, visit the website. The website also has a range of resources to help educate children about financial literacy.