Introducing BUUT Pay: mobile payments for under-16s
- Innovation
Marieke Ziedses des Plantes
Sr Press Officer Corporate Banking, WM, Personal & BB
Young people are growing up in a world where money is becoming increasingly digital. Yet in the Netherlands, under-16s have not been able to pay with their phone – until now. BUUT, ABN AMRO’s bank for young people, is changing that. It is taking this step to further raise young people’s financial awareness, as they learn to manage digital money from an early age with BUUT under the guidance of their parents. With the introduction of BUUT Pay, under-16s can now pay easily and securely with their phone.
Apple Pay and Google Pay set a minimum age of 16 in the Netherlands. As a result, children can have a payment account, but they cannot pay with their phone.
Annerie Vreugdenhil, Chief Commercial Officer Personal & Business Banking at ABN AMRO: “We are the first bank in the Netherlands to change this, by introducing BUUT Pay: mobile payments within a safe, regulated banking environment. BUUT was founded with one clear mission: to help young people grow into the financially strongest generation ever. Parents remain in control and decide what suits their child, so that young people can gain experience with digital money responsibly, together with their parents.”
Mobile payments with BUUT Pay
BUUT Pay works via the BUUT Wallet, which BUUT and ABN AMRO developed specifically for this purpose. It is a mobile payment feature that enables young people aged 10 and over to pay with their smartphone. Paying works in the same way as with Apple Pay and Google Pay: users hold their phone near the payment terminal and confirm the payment using their phone’s security features, such as a PIN code, fingerprint or facial recognition. What sets BUUT Pay apart visually is that young people pay from their own pots. They see their available spending pots on the screen and choose which one to use, such as the clothing allowance pot or the pot for snacks. This ensures money is spent as intended and helps young people become more conscious about their spending.
Financially resilient young people
BUUT teaches young people how to handle money from an early age, in a safe and understandable way. Not by restricting everything, but by providing insight and overview and helping to build confidence, together with their parents. “The phone is a natural part of daily life for young people,” says Sanne van Kuijk of BUUT. “It makes sense for payments to become part of that as well.”
Learning to pay in a digital world, with parents in control
Parents decide for themselves whether BUUT Pay is activated and can adjust the settings at any time. In the BUUT app, they can see their child’s spending, set limits and guide payment behaviour. This gives young people the space to gain experience with digital payments, while parents remain in control. According to financial parenting expert Annelou van Noort, this guidance is essential: “Many parents worry that children are more likely to spend money if they can make mobile payments. In fact the real challenge lies not in the payment method, but in the temptations young people face every day. By allowing young people to gain experience with this under the guidance of their parents, they actually learn to handle money more consciously.”
About BUUT
BUUT is the new bank for teenagers from the creators of Tikkie. Like Tikkie, BUUT is part of ABN AMRO. With BUUT, young people can use handy pots to save up money and make payments easily. The app is designed specially for a new generation: simple, visual, user-friendly and interactive. BUUT is covered by the Dutch Deposit Guarantee Scheme and combines the reliability of a large bank with the innovative power of Tikkie.