Teaching children about money

Helping Indians learn how to manage their money is a cause that is near and dear to all of us at Zerodha. A meaningful part of that has been helping parents invest for their children’s future.

The earlier children start learning about money, the better. Good financial habits formed early tend to stick. Which is why last year, we made it possible for parents to open minor demat accounts completely online. Since then, parents have been opening accounts for children of all ages, with our youngest account holder being 64 days old ❤️

But minor accounts are just one part of what we have built for financial education. Over the past decade, we have created several initiatives to help children learn about money: Rupee Tales (illustrated books for young readers), Varsity Junior (animated videos for older children), school programs that bring financial literacy to thousands of students, and regular financial literacy quizzes across schools in India.

We can keep talking about these initiatives, but nothing beats hearing it from parents who are actually doing it. Here are some first-hand takes from people using a minor account to invest for their children:

What we have built to educate children

Rupee Tales: illustrated books for children

In 2016, we published five illustrated storybooks for children. The goal was to introduce basic financial concepts through simple stories that parents could read with their children.

The books cover:

• Savings – Anu learns to save money for the future
• Banking and inflation—Mani discovers why money is safe in banks
• Taxation – Vishrambu learns about public property
• Insurance – Tara wonders if she can insure her toys
• Stock markets – An eight-year-old receives a lesson in equity

All five books are available as free PDF downloads at rupeetales.com.

These books work well for children aged four and above.

Varsity Junior: animated videos for older children

Varsity Junior is an animated video series for children aged eight and above. Each episode tells a story about children in a small town. Their daily adventures, whether it is planning a budget for vegetables or wondering why a haircut costs more than last year, naturally lead to financial lessons.

Four episodes are currently available:

• Ideas by the Lake – The power of compound interest
• The Vegetable List – Budgeting and the value of money
• The Haircut Affair – Understanding inflation
• Mani’s Beloved Bag – Banking basics

The episodes are designed as stories, not lectures. Children watch them without feeling like they are in a classroom.

Watch all episodes at zerodha.com/varsity/junior.

Financial literacy in schools

Not every child has access to books or reliable internet at home, which is why we partnered with the Nagpur Zilla Parishad to bring financial literacy to over 1,500 government schools. Teachers were trained across 525 schools, reaching nearly 15,000 students.

What we found was encouraging. Some schools had already started their own initiatives—simulated banks where children deposited small amounts, filled out deposit slips, and maintained passbooks. In one school, children painted diyas, sold them at festivals, and deposited their earnings. One girl withdrew her entire savings of ₹75 to help her family when her parents could not find work during a festival.

We are working to expand this program to more schools across India. We have also been conducting regular financial literacy quizzes across schools, so far reaching 37 schools across 14 cities and engaging with nearly 10,000 students.

Minor accounts: learning by doing

Reading about investing is helpful. Watching videos about it is useful. But nothing teaches quite like actually doing it, which is why we introduced online minor account opening for parents to invest along with their children.

To open a minor account, visit zerodha.com/open-account/minor. If you would like to learn more about how minor accounts work, check out this support article.

If you have questions, please post them in the comments below.