Venmo Teen Accounts Aim to Offer Financial Flexibility but Keep Parents in Charge
Parents and guardians must open the accounts, and they can monitor transactions and send money.
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Parents and guardians of teenagers aged 13 to 17 can now sign up for a Venmo Teen Account on their teen's behalf.
Venmo, the PayPal-owned mobile-payment service, is introducing a Venmo Teen Account for 13- to 17-year-olds that the company says offers convenience and the chance to learn about money. Parents or guardians must open the accounts, which include a debit card, Venmo said Monday.
"Venmo is a natural place for teens to learn how to engage with money responsibly, especially considering 86% of Gen Z are interested in using an app to learn about personal finance," Erika Sanchez, Venmo vice president and general manager, said in a statement. "For parents or legal guardians, the Venmo Teen Account allows them to give some financial flexibility to their teens, while giving them parental controls and visibility into their teen's spending habits."
Debit cards for teens aren't exactly new. Many parents appreciate how such cards eliminate the need for their children to carry cash, and how easy it makes tracking purchases, though such cards aren't completely without risk. CNET's list of best debit cards for kids and teens cautions that parents need to set up limits on how cards are used and try to minimize access to kids' personal information.
A provided image from Venmo shows a debit card for the new teen accounts, plus a cell phone open to the Venmo app.
Venmo said parents and guardians can monitor transactions, manage privacy settings and send money to their teen. The adults can also monitor up to five teen accounts from their own Venmo account.
The teen account has no monthly fees and includes no-fee cash withdrawals at participating ATMs. Teen accounts may be eligible to receive direct deposits from after-school jobs or other sources. The teen account balance is separate from their parent's account.
To sign up, parents can open the Venmo app, navigate to the Me screen, tap their name and choose create a teen account from a drop-down menu.
Venmo teen accounts are rolling out to select customers beginning in June and will be more widely available in the coming weeks.
For more, check out some basic tips for protecting your privacy on Venmo and Cash App.