UCO Bank vs ICICI Bank: Children’s Savings Accounts
UCO Bank offers its UCO Smart Kids Savings Bank Scheme for children above 10 years of age while ICICI Bank also has two dedicated children’s accounts called the Young Stars Account and Smart Star Savings Account.
Children’s Savings Accounts from UCO Bank
The bank offers the UCO Smart Kids Savings Bank Scheme for children above the age of 10 years.
UCO Smart Kids Savings Bank Scheme
The account allows kids to open and run a savings account without any need for joint ownership with parents or guardians.
Features
- Any literate child above the age of 10 years can open and operate the account
- There is no minimum balance requirement
- The kids get two chequebooks a year
- The ATM card is personalised with a photograph. Kids also get a good looking passbook
- Children can withdraw up to Rs. 3,000 per day subject to a limit of Rs. 15,000 per month through ATMs or net banking
- A key benefit of this UCO Smart Kids Savings Bank Scheme is the ability for children to undertake transactions through net banking after a certain period of time
- The bank also offers concessions for education loans
Children’s Savings Accounts from ICICI Bank Limited
India’s second largest private sector bank offers two dedicated children’s accounts called the Young Stars Account and Smart Star Savings Account.
Young Stars Account
The account can be opened by a parent or guardian for the child who is between the ages of 1 day old and 18 years
Features
- The children get a debit card with per day limit of 2,500 for ATM and POS transactions (A caveat here: the wording on the site is not clear if the limit is Rs. 2,500 or Rs. 5,000 but the FAQs section of the account puts the limit as Rs. 2,500 (for withdrawal and spends?)
- The Young Star – Minor Under Guardianship Account has no transaction limit
- The card has a Zero Liability feature that protects against unauthorised transactions if the card is lost or misplaced provided the same is communicated to the bank within 15 days
- Kids can earn 1 reward point for every Rs. 200 spent on the card
- The minimum monthly average balance needed for the Young Stars Account is Rs. 2,500. The charges in case of non-maintenance of this minimum amount is 5% of the shortfall
- Parents can put in standing instructions to debit money directly from their account to the kid’s account
- The account has a Money Multiplier facility or the sweep in-sweep out option to put the money in a fixed deposit if the amount crosses a certain limit
Smart Star Savings Account
The account is available for kids above 10 years and up to 18 years of age to open and operate independently on their own. It comes in two options. More on the second point in the features below. Most of the features and fees and charges are same as the Young Stars Account
Features
- The account comes in two variants – with guardian consent and without guardian consent. In the former case, the account will have a limit of Rs. 2 lakh on debit transaction every fiscal. If the account does not have guardian consent, this limit is Rs. 50,000
- Accountholders get a debit card with per day limit of 5,000 each for ATM and POS transactions
- As with Young Stars Account, the card for Smart Star Savings Account has the Zero Liability feature that insures against unauthorised transactions if the card is lost, stolen or misplaced if the bank is told of the same within 15 days
- Even here, the child earns 1 reward point for every Rs. 200 spent through the card
- The minimum monthly average balance is also same at Rs. 2,500 and so are the fees for non-maintenance of this minimum amount
Reference Facts
- UCO Bank Website: www.ucobank.com and www.ucoebanking.com (net banking)
- Headquarters: Kolkata, West Bengal
- Call Centre Number: 1800 274 0123
- ICICI Bank Website: www.icicibank.com
- Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
- Call Centre Number: 1800 200 3344, 1800-103-8181 (Private Banking). Has specific number for different cities