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- Parental control: The State Duma in the first reading approved a ban on the independent opening of bank accounts by teenagers
Parental control: The State Duma in the first reading approved a ban on the independent opening of bank accounts by teenagers
In the first reading, the State Duma approved a ban on banks opening accounts for teenagers without parental consent. The measure should protect children from the illegal actions of intruders. The initiative can help in the fight against fraudsters, but it is also important to develop the financial literacy of minors, experts believe. What the new norm will change is in the Izvestia article.
The defense mechanism
In the first reading, the State Duma adopted a bill prohibiting banks from opening accounts for minors without the permission of parents or guardians. The speaker of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin announced the consideration of the initiative the day before. The new measure is designed to protect children from the actions of scammers.
Today, teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 can independently open bank accounts and issue cards. The volume of issuance of the latter increases annually by 20-25%. In 2023 alone, 2 million people were underage bank customers.
The authors of the initiative propose to prohibit banks from entering into any contracts with teenagers without the written consent of their parents or legal representatives. It is expected that the new rule will prevent the involvement of children in illegal activities and protect them from rash acts.
It is noteworthy that the Civil Code has already defined the need to obtain the consent of the child's legal representatives to make transactions. Back in 2021, the Ministry of Education pointed out the need to expand the interpretation of this provision of the law. The Agency proposed to extend its effect to the conclusion of a bank account agreement.
In the same year, the Bank of Russia recommended that credit institutions request permission to open accounts from parents and guardians of children. However, not all banks listened to the Central Bank's position.
The practice of opening accounts without adult consent continues to be widely used. This procedure is justified by the fact that when opening an account, the rules on the bank deposit agreement are applied, which does not require written permission, the authors of the bill indicated in the explanatory note.
In order to prevent ambiguous interpretation by banks of the norms of the Civil Code, it is proposed to introduce an outright ban into it.
Get suspicious
Children, as the least financially literate segment of the population, who are not fully aware of their actions and their consequences, are indeed susceptible to adverse external influences. Teenagers are at risk of committing various financial manipulations. For example, droperstvo qualifies as complicity in criminal fraud using bank cards and other payment instruments, warns Oleg Matyunin, managing partner of the law firm Matyuniny and Partners.
The bill under consideration can help in situations where fraudsters have already contacted a teenager with a proposal to issue a new card, says Evgenia Bodnar, head of the Financial and Legal Alliance Customer Support department. The initiative cuts off the ability to open multiple accounts without the knowledge of legal representatives, provoking criminal activity.
The requirement of parental consent when opening an account by a teenager creates an additional barrier to committing rash actions, agrees Vladislav Nikonov, an investor and founder of the social network about finance "Bazaar". Financial products are quite complicated, and teenagers may not always be able to figure them out on their own.
— Parental verification will allow adults to check the account opening in time and explain the possible risks to the child, — the expert believes.
Barrier environment
The bill under consideration is aimed at protecting minors, says Igor Vakhromov, managing partner of the Protector Law firm and a member of the Russian Bar Association, but its effectiveness requires further analysis.
The arguments for this are not yet supported by public data on the massive involvement of teenagers in illegal activities through bank accounts, says Mikhail Polyakov, associate professor of the Department of State and Municipal Management at the State University of Management, Candidate of Economic Sciences.
"If the problem is a single one, the law risks being redundant," the expert warns.
The very essence of the bill does not eliminate the main problem associated with the opening of accounts by minors — low financial literacy. And the key threats are more often associated with it, rather than with the fact of having an account, Polyakov believes. Depriving teenagers of the opportunity to manage their own funds in their account can slow down the development of their financial literacy and responsibility, warns Vakhromov.
In addition, the restriction of financial independence creates a legal paradox, because according to current legislation, children over the age of 14 already have the right to make transactions, with the exception of minor household transactions, only with the written consent of their parents, the source reminds Izvestia.
Minors at this age have partial legal capacity — they have the right to work and manage their income, Polyakov adds. The new restrictions will complicate this process, especially for those who are economically active and receive a scholarship or salary.
The implementation of the initiative may require additional approvals, which will lead to delays and bureaucratic barriers, experts agree.
The bill has good goals, but needs to be finalized, Polyakov is convinced. Before adopting it, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive study of the extent of abuse involving teen accounts, and instead of total bans, secure financial products should be introduced.
According to the economist, youth bank cards with automatic limits, notifications for parents and blocking of risky transactions can become a technological compromise.
It is also worth remembering that teenagers have problems with cards and accounts not only because of fraudsters, Vladislav Nikonov draws attention. Often, minors simply do not know the bank's terms and conditions — hidden fees, default overdraft, paid subscriptions, and so on.
— A child who receives a card may not notice how fees for SMS notifications or cashback card maintenance are deducted from the balance, which leads to disputes between the bank and the parents. Precedents of involving teenagers in illegal fraudulent schemes and transfers are rare, but misunderstandings with financial services occur on a daily basis," the Izvestia interlocutor emphasizes.
In other words, the parliamentarians' initiative has both potential advantages and obvious risks. To achieve a balance between the security and financial independence of teenagers, it is advisable not to prohibit the opening of accounts, but to regulate their access to banking services, combining reasonable restrictions with systemic financial education, Vakhromov believes.
Betting on awareness
Financial literacy is not only an understanding of the financial market and its instruments, but also the ability to use money, recalls Alexey Denisov, Vice President of the National Association of Non—Governmental Pension Funds.
— A person who wants to manage money effectively and ensure financial security will need self-discipline, responsibility, the ability to count and plan, and emotional stability. All these qualities need to be developed in a child from childhood," he emphasizes.
It is especially important to lay the foundation for a proper approach to money management during adolescence, because this is the stage when young people begin to realize their financial independence and responsibility to themselves and society, the expert points out.
— And it is the parents who lay this foundation. If a child has seen an example of a responsible financial attitude in the family, he will come out into adulthood with a ready-made knowledge base. A teenager whose parents were involved in financial education will have an idea of what accounting for expenses and income is, and planning a personal budget. He will understand the importance of long—term goals and realize the need to build financial reserves in case of unforeseen circumstances," the Izvestia interlocutor is confident.
Ideally, there should be trust between parents and children so that the child is not afraid to admit the need for money and does not look for dubious ways to earn extra money, adds Evgenia Bodnar.
At the state level, investments in the systematic improvement of financial literacy are more effective than strict prohibitions, Mikhail Polyakov believes.
"To do this, you can include practical modules on budget, taxes and cybersecurity in school curricula, develop gamified simulation applications or online quests from the Bank of Russia," the expert lists.
And in order to protect the child from intruders, he should be instructed about the methods of fraudsters and the consequences that can occur when involved in illegal activities.
— If a teenager is aware of this, it is unlikely that having an account with a credit institution will cause any problems. It is the task of both parents and the school to inform and make sure that the child accepts the information and understands what has been said, Bodnar is convinced.
At the same time, it is necessary to instill the basics of financial literacy in a teenager not only in theory, but also in practice. For example, set a goal to save up for a gadget and plan a budget, highlighting expenses that can be reduced and the amount that needs to be postponed weekly, recommends Vladislav Nikonov.
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