For many of you, your first savings account coincided with your first job. It was a rite of passage into real adulthood, a time when you finally had to be responsible for your own money.
Writer and editor Jill Radovan, however, recently opened one for her 4-year-old daughter. In fact, she’s done the same for each of her kids: Her two older daughters and son all have bank accounts of their own. Jill is passing on what she has learned, having grown up with a kid’s savings account.
“I was maybe 6 or 7 years old,” Jill shares of the time she opened her first savings account. “I was given one, so I could save all the aguinaldo I received during Christmas, and deposit the money I saved in my piggy bank once it was full.”
Jill says she learned three important lessons because of her bank account. The first: “You don't always have to spend the money you receive as gifts.”
Kids often get excited about having money of their own and tend to spend it immediately on toys and candies. Having a bank account teaches them that there’s always an alternative to spending: Saving.
That’s the second lesson: The value of money.
“Rather than wasting it,” she says, “save it.” It’s a mindset that helped Jill manage her finances more responsibly as an adult. It’s all about having the emotional maturity to save for something you really want, versus buying something on a whim for immediate gratification.
Jill chose to open BDO Junior Savers accounts for each of her kids. One of the reasons she decided on BDO specifically was because of its accessibility.
“[With BDO,] you can do inter-branch deposits. Some branches are open even on weekends, so whenever my kids have already saved some money on their own, it’s easy for me to accompany them to the bank to deposit,” she shares.
Opening four BDO Junior Savers accounts for her kids was relatively easy. It only takes an initial deposit of Php100 to open one, and the money starts earning interest once it hits a Php2,000-deposit balance.
According to Jill, letting her kids have individual accounts instead of a shared one makes saving money more convenient.
“Opening separate accounts for the kids makes it easier to organize the money they receive on their birthdays, on Christmas, or whenever a ninong or ninang is in town,” she continues. “If they save some of their allowances, they have the option to deposit the money, too.”
BDO also makes it easier for Jill and her kids to monitor their savings. “Letting them see the growing amount encourages them to be wise with their spending,” she says.
Perhaps the most exciting benefit is what Jill and her husband have planned for when their children turn 18. BDO allows parents to transfer money to their kids’ accounts via Easy Saver or Online Banking.
“We promised them we’d turn over the entire amount to them once they turn 18,” she says. “It’s like a trust fund of sorts.”
For Jill, her husband, and their four children, a BDO Junior Savers account isn’t just a way for kids to save money; it’s also a valuable teaching tool, and a gift to welcome them into their adult years. And, for many parents, those benefits can be truly priceless.
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Learn more about the BDO Junior Savers by visiting the official BDO website and following BDO on Facebook.
