UPDATED 23:24 EDT / MAY 09 2017

APPS

With launch of smart debit card app, kids can now have a digitized allowance

New York startup Current is giving parents the opportunity to control their children’s allowance through an app that allows kids to use a Visa debit card.

The app not only allows parents to see how and where the kids are using up their allowance but also lets them set tasks through the app. When the task is completed and reviewed, the money is transferred from mommy’s or daddy’s bank account to the child’s card.

Allowances can be automated to transfer money at certain times, and while the kids get a chance to play grownup with their debit cards, parents can also block specific retailers, or even nighttime establishments such as bars and casinos. Kids can also automate money to go into a savings wallet or even donate part of their hard-earned cash to a charity of their choosing. The app lists 2 million such charities, but parents have to give the OK before donations can be given.

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According to Current’s founder, Stuart Sopp, the app was developed after he realized his own child needed to learn about financial responsibility. “I worked on Wall Street for 17 years as a trader and manager,” Sopp told TechCrunch in an interview, “Now as a father, I wanted to build something with financial discipline.”

If the kids do act irresponsibly with their money, parents can step in and put limits on daily spending or how much their child can withdraw from an ATM. The default settings on the app may have big-spending offspring in mind, with a $2,000 per day spending limit and a ceiling of $500 from an ATM at one time, but it’s easily changed.

Parents can set up Current with any bank account and the app runs on mobile, desktop and Android and iOS apps. It also works with messaging services such as Facebook Messenger, Kik and Apple iMessages.

It’s not free, however. Parents pay $5 per month, or less for long-term subscriptions. At the moment it’s only available in the U.S., but Current said it’s in talks with banks in Europe, Canada and Australasia.

Image: Mark Ou via Flickr

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