Younger people aged between 16 and 17 can now get a Monzo account.

Available for all 16 and 17-year-olds across the UK, the Monzo account will be fully accessible with almost all the regular features available. This move opens Monzo up to more than 1.5 million new young people.

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On its blog, the fintech stated that from today, 16 and 17-year-old customers can sign up for a Monzo account by downloading the app. The new customers will then receive a contactless debit card in the post by the next working day.

What’s on offer

  • a full UK current account with an account number and sort code, so you can send and receive money by bank transfer, and set up Direct Debits and standing orders
  • a contactless debit card
  • the full Monzo account app, with instant spending updates, clever budgeting, notifications if you’re spending too fast and easy bill splitting with any friends on Monzo
  • The ability to link with Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Monzo account restrictions

Most of the quirky features that Monzo customers enjoy are fully accessible to the younger customers. However, there are some restrictions.

Certain banking features such as overdrafts will be blocked on the card until the customer has turned 18 years old. However, the challenger wants to empower young people in managing money.

The blog noted:

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“We won’t be offering overdrafts to anyone under 18, but that doesn’t mean we’ll be charging people if they accidentally spend more than they’ve got. Helping young people learn to manage their money means giving them leeway to make mistakes without clamping down hard. If someone goes overdrawn, we’ll let them know and ask them to pay it back – but we won’t charge them any money for it.”

More obviously, the ability to use the Monzo account for gambling is blocked for 16 and 17 year-olds.

Getting started

Opening up a Monzo account will take just five minutes. The challenger will request some details and a short video of the customer describing why they want an account. This is how Monzo will determine that a young person is who they say they are.

Once the young customer turns 18, Monzo will automatically remove the spending blocks. The fintech will then review an overdraft limit that fits the individual.