Junior Savers

Gotta start them young!

My son just got Baptized last Saturday, June 11th, and he received a lot of monetary gifts as per custom. I don't want his money lying around the house and I don't want his money saved together with mine, so I made the decision to open bank accounts for him and his big sister- their very own!

My babies' passbooks =)

If you plan to open a BDO Junior Savers account for your child (0-6 years old), this list of requirements might help you:

• Just to be sure, make an initial deposit of 500Php
• Photocopy of his birth certificate (bring the original for reference just in case)
• If you're married, bring a copy of your marriage contract (bring the original too for reference just in case)
• Some branches ask for yours and the child's 1x1 photos (my branch didn't) but just bring a couple anyway just to be sure
• And this is very important: your 2 valid IDs with the same signature. My signature evolved over the years so my older ID got rejected. I had to get a barangay clearance just because my signature was different on my passport. They used my barangay clearance as a subsitute and it served as the 2nd valid ID.
• Your child doesn't need to be present with you at the time of account opening if he is 6 years old or below.
• On the phone they asked me to bring my child's school ID and school registration form (enrollment receipt perhaps?) but they didn't ask for it in the bank. Weird.

A few things to note:

• If your child is 7 years old and above, you need to take them with you to the bank as he needs to sign the paperwork himself. Bring the same requirements above to be sure.
• Only children who are 7 years old and above are granted an ATM card. 6 years and below are only given passbooks.
• Unless the child is granted an ATM card (7 years old and above), there is no way for you to check their account balance unless you ask over the counter or if you have an account yourself with BDO. They might be able to connect your accounts together or something. That, I'm not sure, because I don't have an account with them.
• I was told that there is a monthly interest of 500Php which I think is a tad too much for a Junior Savers account, but doing my research it's .25% annually. I don't know which to believe but I was in a hurry so I wasn't able to clarify with the teller.
• The child needs to have a minimum balance of 100Php in his account.

Hope this helps out other moms who'd like to take the same step in teaching their kids the value of money.