Photo (cc) by kenteegardin

Don’t be surprised if the 10-year-old standing in front of you at the local supermarket pays for his soda and candy bar with plastic instead of wadded up dollar bills.

Oink, a prepaid account and debit card for kids, gives young people the ability to make purchases online or in stores, while allowing parents to have control of their kids’ spending.

Here’s how it works:

• New account. A parent sets up a child’s account on Oink.com. An app is also available. Oink cards have a $10 annual fee.
• Parental controls. Parents are able to set up parameters for their kids’ spending. They also may specify how they want to be notified of purchases on the account.
• Deposit money. A parent can use a debit or credit card to load funds (like allowance money, emergency funds and gift money) into their child’s Oink account and/or debit card.
• Shop. The Discover-backed prepaid Oink debit cards are accepted anywhere Discover is accepted. The card cannot be used at ATMs.

According to Oink’s FAQs, the prepaid debit cards give kids some freedom with money, while allowing parents to have the final say in their child’s spending habits.

Oink acts like a safety net for your credit card. If a requested purchase complies with the rules set up on that account and receives parent approval, Oink’s technology allows the purchase to go through on the credit card associated with that account.

“When you look at teenagers growing up today, the idea of going to a bank and opening a bank account and getting a checkbook just doesn’t really make sense anymore,” Jo Webber, founder and CEO of Oink, told MarketWatch.

Webber said three-quarters of Oink debit card users are between the ages of 13 and 18, though there are users as young as 6 years old.

Are you struggling with how to teach your kids about financial matters? Find out “What Kids Should Know About Money at Every Age and Stage.”

What do you think of kids using prepaid debit cards? Share your comments below or on our Facebook page.