Show me the E-money: Technology makes controlling money a pleasure not a chore
The rise of Bank of Me: Ipsos pan-European research for MasterCard reveals that, far from being a chore, people like monitoring their money – and women have the power over the purse strings.
80% say they like to keep track of their finances and look for greater control over their spending, according to new pan-European research from MasterCard conducted by Ipsos.
Across the six countries polled, 77% of people regularly check their current account balance and 79% know exactly what their credit card limits are. In an era where most emails are unwanted and the majority of post is junk, money mail is the exception. 66% of people across Europe read all or most of the communications received from their bank or card provider. The public's demand to take more control over their money coincides with a lack of trust in the banks, with only 54% of people saying that they trust their banks and just 31% saying that their bank provides sufficient information.
With access to and control of bank accounts now widely available online and through mobile apps, people are embracing being more financially aware than ever. 76% of people manage their finances online. People are also likely to avoid options that can make controlling money more difficult, with 64% saying they try not to buy things on credit.
Despite this level of online access, the jam-jar is still the resting place for many people’s money and remains a common practice no matter what their level of affluence is. This type of saving isn’t just age-old – it’s also unconventional in the modern internet age where only 35% of people regularly visit a bank branch. People’s reasons for preserving this old fashioned habit include: ‘If money is in the bank […] all of a sudden it’s all spent without my even noticing it’ – even though most prefer to make payments using cards (64%) rather than cash (42%).
When it comes to the age old question of who holds the purse strings, it is women who are more engaged with money matters. 83% of women say they more commonly keep track of household finances compared to 78% of men. Women are also more likely to regularly check the balance on their current account (79% of women against 74% of men). This contrasts with male opinion, with men thinking they are the ones in charge of the household budget; 62% believe they are the ones who make the most household budgeting decisions.
As control over our money becomes important to us, this research demonstrates that prepaid cards can also help with some of the other concerns that we have over handling our money:
- 70% of parents of children aged 13+ think that prepaid is a good way to teach children about money management
- 67% think that prepaid offers more security when travelling abroad
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Technical note
The research was conducted between April & June 2014 with consumers across six markets (Belgium, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland Spain & Turkey) to understand their current financial behaviours and where prepaid currently fits, or has potential to fit, into their lives. The approach was designed with breadth and depth in mind. The quantitative element contained a sample of 2400 respondents, including 1000 prepaid users and 1400 non prepaid users. This was combined with an in-depth ethnographic study, looking qualitatively at how 36 different households live day-to-day, how they manage their finances and where they currently struggle.
