Cash App Helps Families Build Healthy Financial Habits Together with New, Parent-Managed Accounts for Kids

Kids ages 6–12 can now earn up to 3.25%* interest on savings, receive money from trusted contacts, and design their own Cash App Visa Card with oversight from a parent or legal guardian**

New findings from Cash App’s “Raising Gen Alpha” report¹ show how kids are managing their money and demonstrate the importance of early financial literacy

DISTRIBUTED-WORK-MODEL/OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As the U.S. marks Financial Literacy Month this April, a new Cash App survey conducted by The Harris Poll finds that 89% of parents of Gen Alpha kids² say their children are currently saving up for something, ranging from new toys and collectibles to investing in their own business ventures. Today, Cash App, a part of Block, Inc. (NYSE: XYZ) is making it easy for families to budget together by introducing managed accounts, a safe way for kids ages 6–12 to manage money with their parents. The expanded Cash App Families product experience, which now includes a limited set of features designed for kids, is currently rolling out to eligible parents and legal guardians on Cash App.

According to Cash App survey data, half of parents on the platform say they're already using Cash App to manage money on behalf of their kids.³ Managed accounts give parents a dedicated place on the platform to send allowances, set aside savings, and track spending for their child, kickstarting their path to financial independence. Now, Cash App can scale with families as they grow and gain more financial confidence.

"Cash App serves more than 5 million teens on a monthly basis, and we've heard from parents that they want to start building good money habits with their kids even earlier," said Owen Jennings, Executive Officer and Head of Business at Block. "We built managed accounts to give kids access to real financial tools and experiences while keeping parents fully involved.”

Managed accounts offer a restricted set of Cash App features with built-in protections for kids:

• Parents stay in control: Parents access managed accounts through their personal Cash App, and kids can’t access or interact with the app directly.
• Allowances and contributions from trusted contacts: The Raising Gen Alpha report found that nearly all parents of Gen Alpha kids (93%) say their children receive their own money, mostly through an allowance or as gifts from friends and family (62% each). With managed accounts, parents can automate recurring transfers from their account to their child’s, which can be paused or updated at any time. Kids can also receive money from up to 5 trusted contacts chosen by the parent; payment attempts from contacts who are not approved will fail.
• Savings made simple, with interest: Families can create personalized savings goals together and earn Cash App’s highest savings rate–up to 3.25%*–on their savings balance.
• A unique, customizable debit card: Kids can design their Cash App Card, and families can access features including spending insights and the ability to save their spare change by enabling Round Ups.
• Seamless graduation to the sponsored experience for teens: Once a kid turns 13, parents can choose to convert the managed account to a sponsored account, which gives the teen access to the app and more Cash App features with a parent’s approval.
• A safe and secure experience for families: Cash App’s advanced fraud detection systems monitor for suspicious activity 24/7. Parents get real-time transaction alerts, and the Cash App Card has built-in guardrails that prevent kids from spending at certain merchant categories. Families accounts may also be eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance through Cash App’s partner banks, subject to terms.**

Parents can set up a managed account in minutes by opening Cash App, navigating to the Families section, and tapping "Add." As always, Cash App accounts have no minimum balance requirements or hidden fees.

Paving Gen Alpha’s Path to Financial Literacy

Findings from Cash App’s new Raising Gen Alpha report - which explores how parents of Gen Alpha approach money conversations with their kids, what tools would make these conversations easier, and what kids are financially focused on - demonstrate how access to resources like managed accounts on Cash App can help. Key insights from the survey include:

• Gen Alpha is saving early:
  • A majority of parents of Gen Alpha kids (89%) say their children are currently saving up for something, most commonly:
    • Digital/gaming purchases (34%)
    • Personal technology (32%)
    • Toys/collectibles (32%)
  • Some children are making bigger, future-looking savings choices including:
    • Saving for college (28%)
    • Saving for a car (23%)
    • Saving for an investment in personal business ventures (15%)

• Early money management education translates into better financial skills in adulthood
  • Nearly half of parents of Gen Alpha kids who learned money management from their own parents before age 13 (48%) were able to translate those skills into adult life, and nearly a third (30%) were able to achieve financial independence by 18.
  • Parents of Gen Alpha kids who learned money management from their own parents before age 17 are more likely than those who did not to say they had the following key financial skills by 18:
    • 57% say they understood how to budget and manage their money effectively (vs. 42%)
    • 55% say they saved for themselves (vs. 39%)
    • 23% say they were able to invest on their own (vs. 15%)
  • About three-quarters of parents of Gen Alpha kids (77%) have already started discussing money management with their children.

• Parents of Gen Alpha kids want transparent, simple, and safe solutions:
  • 41% say having easy-to-access collaborative financial tools they can use with their children would help them have more honest money management conversations.
  • 40% say the same of having a digital financial tool to help teach money habits instead of relying on physical cash.

Parents want tools that spark open and educational conversations about money, and kids are already thinking about their financial futures. With Cash App managed accounts, kids can learn by doing and develop healthy money habits alongside their parents.

To learn more about Cash App Families, visit cash.app/families.

*Cash App will pass through a portion of the interest paid on your savings balance held in an account for the benefit of Cash App customers at Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Member FDIC. To earn interest on your Cash App savings balance, you need to have sponsor approval. Exceptions may apply. Savings yield rate is subject to change.

**Parents and legal guardians can open a managed account for kids 6-12. To view the eligibility requirements for sponsoring a teen or child, please visit the Sponsored Accounts section of the Cash App Terms of Service. This product is not currently available in New York.

With a Sponsored Account, your funds are eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance through Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Sutton Bank, and/or The Bancorp Bank, N.A., Members FDIC for up to $250,000 per customer when aggregated with all other deposits held in the same legal capacity at each bank, if certain conditions are met. The FDIC insures your balance only in the event that the bank(s) identified above holding your funds fails. See the Cash App Terms of Service.

Cash App is a financial services platform, and not an FDIC-insured bank. Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. Cash App Visa® Debit Flex Cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, and The Bancorp Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc.

About Cash App:

Cash App is the money app. Banking*** on Cash App is easy: customers can receive paychecks early with direct deposit, spend money where Visa® is accepted with a personalized Cash App Card, and grow their money with a separate savings balance - all without hidden fees. Customers can also create a unique $Cashtag to share with anyone to get paid fast, make purchases with Cash App Pay, trade stocks and buy and sell bitcoin.**** With Afterpay*****, customers can also pay over time in a way that best fits their financial needs through participating merchants or directly in the app. Download Cash App for free at cash.app/download.

***Cash App is a financial services platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App’s bank partner(s). Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. Cash App Visa® Debit Flex Cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, and The Bancorp Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. See terms and conditions for the Sutton prepaid card, Sutton debit flex card, and Bancorp debit flex card. See cash.app for more details. Direct Deposit, Round Ups feature and Savings provided by Cash App, a Block Inc. brand.

****Brokerage services provided by Cash App Investing LLC, member FINRA/SIPC, subsidiary of Block, Inc. Stablecoin and Lightning Network are not available to New York residents. Bitcoin services provided by Block, Inc. Bitcoin services are not licensable activity in all U.S. states and territories. Block, Inc. operates in New York as Block of Delaware and is licensed to engage in virtual currency business activity by the New York State Department of Financial Services. Investing and bitcoin are non-deposit, non-bank products that are not FDIC insured and involve risk, including monetary loss. Cash App Investing does not trade bitcoin and Block, Inc. is not a member of FINRA or SIPC. For additional information, see the Bitcoin and Cash App Investing disclosures.

*****Afterpay is offered and managed through your Cash App account - no Afterpay account needed. Eligibility is based on several factors and is not guaranteed. Afterpay is not available in all states. Afterpay loans issued by First Electronic Bank, serviced by Square Capital, Inc. View state licenses.

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