Catholic Syrian Bank vs Bank of Baroda (BoB): Children’s Savings Accounts
Catholic Syrian Bank allows parents and guardians to open its various savings accounts – Blue, Silver, Gold and Platinum – on behalf of minors. Bank of Baroda (BoB) has the Baroda Champ Savings Account. The bank is also supposed to have a Gen-Next Junior account which seems to be offered only in the Gen-Next Pune branch of the bank.
Let us look at each of these accounts.
Children’s Savings Accounts from Catholic Syrian Bank
Catholic Syrian Bank is one of the oldest banks in the country having been established in 1920. The bank does not offer a dedicated children’s savings bank account but its Blue, Silver, Gold and Platinum savings accounts can be opened on behalf of minors by their parents or guardian.
Blue Savings Account
This savings account comes one step up the InstaDigital Savings Account but offers lesser number of features than the Gold and Platinum accounts.
Features
- Offers up to 5 free use of other bank ATMs
- Allows up to Rs. 40,000 in withdrawals from ATMs per day
- The Blue Savings Account comes with the RuPay Platinum Debit Card
- Minimum quarterly balance needed is Rs. 1,000 for urban areas and Rs. 500 for rural regions
Silver Savings Account
The Silver Savings Account is one step up the Orange Savings Account and comes with the following features.
Features
- Unlimited free access to any ATMs in India
- Allows up to Rs. 75,000 in withdrawals from ATMs every day
- Users get 20% discount on locker rentals
- The Silver Savings Account comes with the VISA Platinum Debit Card and offers all its benefits
- Minimum quarterly balance needed is Rs. 5,000 for urban and rural areas
Gold Savings Account
The Gold savings account from Catholic Syrian falls between the Silver and Platinum accounts. Most of its benefits are similar to the Silver account.
Features
- Unlimited free access to any bank ATM in the country
- Allows customers to withdraw up to Rs. 75,000 from ATMs every day
- Users get 30% discount on locker rentals
- The Gold Savings Account comes with the VISA Platinum Debit Card
- Minimum quarterly balance requirement is Rs. 25,000 for urban and rural areas
Platinum Savings Account
The top savings account from Catholic Syrian Bank portfolio.
Features
- Users have unlimited free access to any ATMs in India
- Customers can take out up to Rs. 75,000 from any ATM every 24 hours
- The customers also get 50% discount on locker rentals
- Platinum Savings Account comes with the VISA Platinum Debit Card like the Silver and Gold accounts
- Minimum quarterly balance requirement is Rs. 1 lakh for both urban and rural branches
Children’s Savings Accounts from Bank of Baroda
Note: There is limited information on BoB accounts for minors and it seems it did not offer a dedicated children’s account before the Champ and Gen-Next accounts. Possibly, minors could open a standard savings account through a parent or guardian.
Baroda Champ Savings Account
This account is meant for children in the 10-18 years age category. The account was launched in the run-up to the FIFA Under-17 World Cup 2017 that was hosted in India.
Features
- Minors can open the Baroda Champ Savings Account with a minimum deposit of Rs. 1,000
- The maximum balance in the account is capped at Rs. 1 lakh
- BoB allows up to 50 free withdrawals per year. Accountholders can withdraw another 50 times from the account but the bank charges Rs. 15 per transaction
- Children (or parents) can withdraw money from the account using withdrawal slips and cheques. The bank allows withdrawals as low as Rs. 25 in rural and semi-urban areas and Rs. 50 in urban locations
- The debit card for the account is issued in the name of the parent or guardian for kids in the 10-15 years age group. For children over 15 years, it will be in their own name
- The transaction limit is restricted to Rs. 3,000 per day through ATM banking, mobile banking, POS and e-commerce though the overall limit is kept at Rs. 5,000 per day. This means you can go to the branch and withdraw Rs. 2,000 even if you have used up Rs. 3,000 limit
- The bank offers a free passbook for accountholders and cheque book facility with up to 45 free leaves
- Free ATM transactions at other bank ATMs is capped at 3 for 6 Tier I metros (Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad) and at 5 for other cities
Gen-Next Junior
From the bank’s website, it seems the account is only offered the Gen-Next branch in Pune, Maharashtra.
Features
- Minors up to 18 years can open this Gen-Next Junior account
- The average quarterly balance required is Rs. 500 and the bank charges Rs. 50 per quarter if the balance falls below this limit
- Children below 10 years can open the account jointly with parents or guardians; those above 10 years can have an account in their own name provided they are literate
- There is a ceiling on of Rs. 1,00,000 as balance outstanding on any day if the minor holds the account in her own name. In case the account is held jointly by a minor of 14 years or above and the parent or guardian, then there is no such limit
- Debit cards will have the parent’s or guardian’s name if the child is below 15 years; if above, then the kid’s name will be on the card
- The rules for a standard savings account will apply for this account also
Bank of Baroda Savings Account
The standard savings account of the bank.
Features
- The bank has a put an upper limit of Rs. 1,00,000 as the maximum limit outstanding on any day if a minor, aged 10-14 years, operates the account on her own
- The minimum balance requirement is Rs. 500 for rural and semi-urban areas and Rs. 1,000 for urban areas and metros
Note: We are not getting into details here about the savings account. If you wish to know more of the features, you can visit the specific page of the bank website here.
Reference Facts
- Catholic Syrian Bank Website: www.csb.co.in
- Headquarters: Thrissur, Kerala
- Call Centre Number: 1800 266 9090
- Bank of Baroda Website: www.bankofbaroda.com and www.bobibanking.com (net banking)
- Headquarters: Baroda (Vadodara), Gujarat
- Call Centre Toll-Free Number: 1800 223 344, 1800 102 4455