Kiddie savings accounts expanded to include teens
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — More banks will now offer Kiddie Accounts, and the program will be expanded to cover teenagers as well.
Anyone 19 years old and below will be able to open a savings account with a participating bank for just P100, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando Tetangco, Jr. said during the program launch on Wednesday. The accounts will not have any minimum maintaining balance required.
Under the previous rules, he explained, the Kiddie Accounts were converted to regular savings accounts when the accountholder reached 13 years old.
Only 12 banks offered the special accounts. Now, five more banks have joined the program.
These banks are:
Banco de Oro
Bank of the Philippine Islands
BPI Family Savings Bank
China Bank Savings
Development Bank of the Philippines
EastWest Bank
Maybank Philippines
Metrobank
Philippine National Bank
Philippine Savings Bank
Philippine Veterans Bank
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.
RCBC Savings Bank
Security Bank
Sterling Bank of Asia
United Coconut Planters Bank
UCPB Savings Bank
"Aside from targeting a wider market of savers, we also wish to help those who have started the habit of saving sustain it until they have graduated and started working," Tetangco said of the program changes.
Kiddie Accounts were first introduced in 2011 to help teach young Filpinos good money habits.
To date, Banco de Oro, Bank of the Philippine Islands and the Philippine National Bank have the most Kiddie Accounts, Tetangco said.
The BSP has long been pushing to extend the reach of financial services in the country. According to its latest survey, 86% of households did not have a deposit account in 2014.