By Christopher Delporte
It’s never too early to begin thinking — and more importantly, start talking — about money. This isn’t always a conversation, however, that’s easily, eagerly or consistently had in many households, particularly when it comes to educating kids about financial realities and responsibilities.
Ashley LeBaron-Black, a family life assistant professor at Brigham Young University who specializes in financial socialization, says that for some parents, talking to their kids about money can be just as awkward as talking about the birds and the bees. Part of her research focuses on how family financial socialization during childhood and adolescence predicts financial, relational and mental health outcomes in emerging adulthood.
“Many parents treat it as a one-and-done conversation,” LeBaron-Black says in a recent article in BYU’s Marriott School of Business alumni magazine. “They think they can tell their kids all they need to know in one sitting.” Parents don’t always feel like the best sources of financial information, she explained. Others are concerned that such conversations could cause their kids financial stress, particularly if the household struggles financially. On the flip side, kids from well-off families often are shielded from financial thinking and responsibility, according to LeBaron-Black, because parents feel that it provides a “more carefree environment.”
While the conversations might not come easy, the results of survey conducted earlier this year by the ABA Foundation indicate that home is where financial education usually begins. Thirty-eight percent of consumers primarily learned about money and financial concepts from family, according to survey results. Notably, 72% of those surveyed either strongly agreed or somewhat agreed that they would be better off financially had they learned the basics of personal finance at an earlier age.
Promoting financial literacy at an early age has lifelong benefits, and we want to make it easier for families to have conversations and instill positive financial habits at every stage of their financial journey.
Banks understand that they play a role in helping parents better navigate the challenging “money talk” waters, and many financial institutions have begun offering technology and services to assist families in managing financial literacy together.
“Our goal is to offer tools and resources to help parents raise money-savvy kids,” says Laura Ronlund, head of strategic alliances at U.S. Bank. “Promoting financial literacy at an early age has lifelong benefits, and we want to make it easier for families to have conversations and instill positive financial habits at every stage of their financial journey. As a parent myself, I’m looking for age-appropriate guidance and content to help equip me in having conversations with my kids about money.”
A year ago, in pursuit of that goal, U.S. Bank was one of the first to partner with Atlanta-based Greenlight Financial Technology, which has developed a banking app to provide families with tools to manage finances together. At present, the 10-year-old fintech firm partners with approximately 140 financial institutions. Matt Wolf, Greenlight’s chief commercial officer, calls Greenlight for Banks a solution “designed to help banks engage the next generation of customers and empower families with tools to build healthy financial futures.” Among its technology offerings, Greenlight partners directly with banks to provide customers with “a holistic family finance solution,” Wolf says. Through these partnerships, Greenlight creates a co-branded experience for its bank partners, which Wolf says eliminates the need for any technical resources from the bank.
In the last year, Wolf says Greenlight kids and teens collectively managed $2 billion, with their total savings increasing to $259 million this year and investments doubling to $43 million.
“The way that kids consume information has evolved over the years and we’ve evolved with them,” Ronlund says. “Kids want quick, easy-to-digest information that is engaging and available digitally. It’s even better if it can be hands-on to learn by doing or put into practice what they have learned.”
U.S. Bank offers Greenlight’s products as an embedded experience within its mobile app. “It can be a challenge to take topics like budgeting or finances and make it fun and easy for young people,” Ronlund says, explaining that Greenlight’s “gamified approach” to financial literacy makes that process easier, more enjoyable and, thus, more sustainable. “Plus, kids get their own Greenlight debit card so they can build confidence as they put their money skills to work.”
Ronlund explains that because there can be “concerns” that arise with putting money skills into practice with a debit card with kids, Greenlight has developed “best-in-class” educational challenges to keep kids engaged. Kids gain money management experience with parents able to monitor and manage progress along with their children.
Greenlight’s Wolf says his firm’s tools are designed to meet the evolving needs of parents and kids, offering customizability that suits children as young as 8 and as old as 15. “Parents have flexible options to tailor features as their children mature, allowing them to automate allowances, manage chores and send money instantly,” he says. “The app also includes conversational prompts to facilitate at-home discussions about financial topics.”
To further enhance learning, parents can invite their children to engage with Level Up, an interactive, curriculum-based financial literacy game. According to Wolf, this feature includes activities, quizzes and lessons that exceed the national standards for K-12 personal financial education, “empowering kids with essential money skills and confidence. Whether for an 8-year-old just starting to learn about money or a 15-year-old ready to delve deeper.”
Evolving partnerships, changing technology
U.S. Bank and Greenlight say that working together has been more than a one-and-done partnership, and that the work and the end product continues to evolve based on ongoing partner conversations and market research.
“We’re consistently working with banks to understand each customer’s unique needs,” Wolf says. “We’ll regularly survey our partners and engage their audiences through community feedback, pilot programs and direct interactions to ensure our products align with their evolving financial literacy needs and preferences.”
Customers want “effective financial education and tools that support financial independence and literacy.”
Wolf says there has been a “significant shift” toward digital-first banking experiences, driven by technological advancements and changing consumer preferences, particularly among younger generations. “This has led to a growing demand for innovative, user-friendly financial education tools like Greenlight,” he says, “which differentiates itself from the largest banks and neobanks by offering customized financial literacy programs and resources tailored to customers’ specific preferences.”
Customers want “effective financial education and tools that support financial independence and literacy,” Wolf says. A recent Greenlight survey found that 75% of Gen Alpha want more personal finance education, and only 43% believe they will live without credit card debt or student loans, showing the need for early, hands-on guidance to set them on the right path. Additionally, nearly 60% of Gen Z and Gen Alpha are actively seeking early financial education and tools.
U.S. Bank reports that its Greenlight users are engaging with the educational content in the app at higher rate than the average Greenlight user. “This tells us that we are providing information that families and teens want in an effective way,” Ronlund says, noting that the bank is finding new markets and end-users for the technology.
“We continue to drive awareness of the benefits for our customers to ensure that we are helping more families,” Ronlund says. “The Greenlight content has been incorporated into our overall financial literacy strategy to not only help parents teach their kids about money at all stages from preschool through high school, but also for our employees who promote financial literacy in the communities we serve. We’ve also heard from clients who are using Greenlight in other ways, such as for aging parents to monitor spending while maintaining independence with a personal debit card.”
