From Marketplace (audio resource):

The U.S. banking system lags behind places like Europe when it comes to instant person-to-person payments. But a number of big financial institutions are now trying to get in the game. Some banks in the digital payments network called clearXchange are now allowing customers to send and receive money instantly to customers of participating banks using just a mobile number or email address. The exchange is owned by Bank of America, BB&T, Capital One, Chase, PNC, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo. They’re competing with scrappier players like Venmo and Square Cash, which are becoming popular apps for beaming payments to friends and family.

Many experts feel that banks will have an uphill battle in this fight:

“I think that’s the hurdle for banks right now—them being able to make their apps as frictionless and have that cool appeal,” said Baker. “Because Venmo is really cool.”

A good resource to kick-off a conversation about person-to-person payments and have students discuss their experiences with services like Venmo or Paypal. This current event also provides an opportunity for students to conduct research and compare clearXchange with apps like Venmo.

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Be sure to check out the NGPF Activities to extend your Checking Lesson

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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