Kids And Money

I bank mainly with HDFC Bank. When I walk into the Porvorim branch, almost always, someone or the other tries to sell me something I don't want. Stuff like mutual funds, insurance policies, etc. I am used to it and politely decline.

Yesterday was different. I had been to the bank to make a wire transfer. As I was reaching the end of the form, my personal banker asked me how old my son was. I told her that he was four and he already had a Kids Advantage account, in the hope that the conversation would end there. What she said next shook me: "If he was eight we could give him an ATM card".

"What?", I blurted, disbelieving my ears. "You give eight year old's ATM cards?" She was about to make me a sales pitch, but I asked her to save it for someone else. I finished filling the wire transfer form and left wondering what our world was coming to.

I wonder if the next generation will know what currency notes look like, let alone understand and appreciate their value.