UK banks’ gambling spending block gains support

The initiative from a number of banks in the UK has received support from the Money Advice Trust.

UK.- The Money Advice Trust, a charity from the UK that offers independent money advice, has welcomed the plan from banks to introduce controls for customers over where they can spend their money and allowing the blocking of gambling payments.

Barclays introduced the initiative last month, which is featured in the mobile banking app and gives people the ability to ‘turn off’ spending with certain types of retailers which include gambling. Barclays was the first UK high street bank to offer such a possibility, second overall only to mobile-only bankers Monzo. Lloyds, Santander and RBS are also in favor of putting such measure in place.

Jane Tully, director of external affairs at the Money Advice Trust, said: “The fact that a growing number of banks are giving customers greater control over their spending by allowing them to block payments on gambling is a welcome step forward… It will be important for banks to review the impact of these controls and how much ‘friction’ is required to ensure they meet their intended purpose.”