TORONTO, ON–Spendsafe Mastercard® Reloadable Prepaid Card, officially launches in collaboration with Berkeley Payments and Peoples Trust Company, part of Peoples Group. Together, they are delivering a comprehensive financial literacy solution designed exclusively for children and teens aged 6 to 18.
Spendsafe is setting a new standard in youth-focused financial services combining trusted payment infrastructure and adaptive financial learning into a unified experience.
Built in collaboration with Peoples Trust and Berkeley Payments, Spendsafe merges secure prepaid banking, real time parental oversight, and AI-powered coaching into a single, intuitive platform. Spendsafe’s Mastercard-backed offering in Canada embeds real-time financial education directly into a child’s everyday money decisions, while providing parents with the transparency and control needed.
“Financial confidence isn’t built overnight. It’s developed through small, meaningful decisions made over time,” said Vasanth Ratna, CEO and Founder of Spendsafe. “Spendsafe gives families a smarter, safer way to raise financially independent children. With Mastercard as our network provider, we’re proud to deliver a platform that brings together payment security, behavioral learning, and a clear path to lifelong financial wellbeing.”
Spendsafe’s launch comes at a critical time. With more than 8.5 million youth aged 6 to 18 navigating increasingly digital financial environments in Canada, the need for trusted, modern financial tools has never been greater. Yet studies show that most children enter adulthood lacking the foundational skills to manage money confidently; Gen Z scores just 38% on financial literacy assessments, and 75% of teens wish they’d been taught money skills earlier1. Spendsafe addresses this gap head-on, enabling real-world financial learning through a secure prepaid card, a connected mobile app, and a personalized digital coach that adapts as the child grows. The platform also reflects how families are already trying to teach these lessons: in 2024, over 69% of parents used chores to build financial habits, and 73% tied rewards to performance2. Spendsafe makes these lessons easier and more impactful, allowing parents to assign chore-based allowances, set financial goals, and guide spending in real time; all within a safe, structured environment.
“Berkeley Payments has always focused on building future-ready financial solutions that families and partners can trust,” said Lawrence Tepperman, CEO at Berkeley Payments. “We’re proud to help bring Spendsafe to market; a purpose-built platform that empowers young people to build real-world money skills, while giving parents the visibility and confidence they need.”
Our platform ensures that every transaction within the Spendsafe ecosystem is protected and educational. Berkeley’s platform offers built-in fraud prevention, PCI DSS-compliant processing, and merchant safety controls, all layered with a digital coach that turns daily actions into teachable moments. The result is an adaptive experience that helps young users learn by doing, while giving parents real-time insight and control.
Spendsafe is now live across Canada, not including Quebec. Learn more at www.spendsafe.com.
Spendsafe is Canada’s first* and only Mastercard®-backed financial education platform built specifically for youth. Designed for children and teens aged 6 to 18, Spendsafe combines a secure prepaid card, real-time AI coaching, and dynamic parent-child financial tools to create a fully integrated ecosystem for building lifelong money skills. With a mission to empower the next generation through responsible financial habits, Spendsafe turns everyday transactions into teachable moments–offering a safe, scalable solution that grows with each child’s financial journey.
Berkeley is a technology company that enables organizations to easily build, launch, and scale their own white-label banking, payments, and card solutions. Designed as a one-stop shop with security and compliance at its core, Berkeley’s platform simplifies onboarding and monitoring for payment programs and their end customers–ensuring alignment with bank and government risk and regulatory standards. Serving more than 500 corporations, government entities, and financial institutions across the United States and Canada, Berkeley enables its clients to streamline financial operations, enhance employee and customer engagement, and accelerate business growth.
