Carrott adds FEE-HELP and mortgages to its lazy cash feature
The micro-savings app previously only enabled users to add lazy cash to their superannuation.
Micro-savings app Carrott now enables users to add their spare change, known as lazy cash, to contribute to their FEE-HELP debt or mortgage. The app initially only allowed users to add their spare change to their superannuation when it launched in August this year.
The app rounds up any loose change from everyday purchases to the nearest dollar and, once that lazy cash amounts to $5 or more, it contributes this to a user's nominated purpose. Users can now choose to send their lazy cash to their FEE-HELP debt or their mortgage, in addition to their superannuation. The app rounds up any lazy cash transactions made from a user's debit or credit card.
Carrott Founder and CEO Christian Raftery said these new capabilities are a direct result of customer demand. "We have received some great feedback from our users about their financial goals over the past two and a half months. The most requested feature has been assistance with their mortgages. But furthermore, millennials have been shocked to discover how much they actually owe in HELP debt... when applying for mortgage pre-approvals."
The power of loose digital change has become increasingly apparent over the past 12 months. Popular micro-investing app Acorns, which rounds up a user's spare change and invests it on their behalf, launched in February 2016 and boasts more than 300,000 Australian users, and in September this year announced it had achieved $100 million funds under management. Just yesterday Acorns launched its latest feature, Little Acorns, which enables users to allocate a percentage of their balance towards a savings fund for their child.
GROW super is another example in the superannuation space, allowing fund members to round up the loose change from their everyday transactions and add it to their GROW super balance. However, this requires a user to become a GROW super member, while Carrott fits in with a user's current accounts.
Carrott supports most of the major superannuation funds, banks and FEE-HELP debts. All a user needs to do is download the app, link to their nominated account and set-and forget. The app is free to download, however, there are fees attached when using the app; Carrott charges $1.50 a month for account maintenance, plus 3.98% per transaction made.
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