Viva Kids World Dad, Why Don't You Just Pay With Your Card?

Groceries, clothes, restaurant meals – when is the last time you paid with a card? "Invisible money" has long since become part of our everyday lives. But what is clear to us may be quite complicated for children. After all, while children can easily recognize cash as a means of exchange, the cash flow remains invisible with a card payment.

Making Transactions Visible

Therefore, children must understand that, during an "invisible payment" with a card, money is exchanged. The guiding principle applies: talk about ("invisible") money. Everyday situations, such as paying at the supermarket checkout, are particularly suitable for this. "Make the actual function of the card clear to your child," advises Daniel Betschart of Pro Juventute. In his column, he provides helpful tips on how to bridge the gap between physical and digital money.

Providing Room to Learn

The learning effect is greatest when children are allowed to do something themselves – this also applies to handling "invisible money." With their own Maestro card, for instance, children can acquire initial experience and a better understanding of digital money. In an interview, Dr. Christoph Mattes explains how you can tell that your child is ready for their first Maestro card and how to prepare your child for this new responsibility.

Tip: Take a look together with your child at the Maestro card: What information is on it? What do the symbols mean? While looking at the card together, you can also explain that the card is as valuable as cash and must therefore be handled carefully.

The Internet Purchases Trap

However, "invisible money" is not only spent in stores with the card. During online shopping or when purchasing apps, money also flows digitally and is therefore not visible for the child. This can lead to your child, due to saved logins and stored payment information, unintentionally making purchases. Find out what should be done in these cases and how you can protect your family from this in the article "When Children Buy Online".

Will We Soon Only Make Digital Payments?

Even though with TWINT, Apple Pay, or Bitcoin, there are more and more digital means of payment and currencies coming on the market, coins and banknotes are unlikely to die out that fast – at least in Switzerland. That's because the Swiss love their cash and, according to moneyland.ch, 85% of them could not imagine doing without. Find out which means of payment the Swiss population is particularly fond of in addition to cash and what the forecast for the future looks like in the article "Will Cash Become Extinct?".