U.S. Bank in Minneapolis has partnered with the Atlanta-based family finance fintech Greenlight Financial Technology to help customers teach their children healthy spending habits.
Consumers with the $684 billion-asset bank that have eligible U.S. Bank checking accounts can gain free access to Greenlight's platform and linked debit cards for children and teenagers up to 17 years old. The collaboration is the latest product tied to the launch of the institution's
"Families were looking for a better way to raise financially smart kids [and] we found that age-appropriate financial literacy, paired with a debit card to put the skills into practice, is a powerful way to meet that need," said Jennifer Miller, head of strategic alliances and campus banking at U.S. Bank. "Greenlight has revolutionized how parents teach their kids and teens about money, and we wanted to bring that to our customers in a simple and seamless experience."
U.S. Bank
The campaign also includes the "Level Up" financial literacy game Greenlight launched in January 2023, which uses tailored challenges and minigames to teach basic banking concepts and support savings.
Executives of Greenlight have been working to meet a similar demand in the credit union industry.
Following the debut of its
Matt Wolf, senior vice president of business development for Greenlight, said in an earlier interview with American Banker that the introduction of its products for financial institutions drew interest from investors.
For banks and credit unions partnering with Greenlight, "this isn't really a huge play for short-term deposit growth because an 11-year-old typically doesn't have a lot of money in their savings account. … It's really more about how you as a financial institution engage with and acquire those next generations of members," Wolf said.
Fintechs like
When trying to reach young consumers at the beginning of their financial journeys, experts with Cornerstone Advisors say education should come first.
Tools like these "enable parents to not only educate about topics like money movement, what a checking account is and the difference between a debit card and credit card, but also start to motivate children" toward understanding that not everything in life is free, said Amanda Swanson, senior director in the delivery channels practice and practice leader of marketing and growth at Cornerstone Advisors.
