The U.S. has been a capitalist country for over 250 years. Ironically, a survey by the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) found 60% of adults do not have a budget, reflecting ineffective money management and financial planning. In addition, a SecureSave survey revealed a shocking 63% of employees cannot cover an emergency expense of $500, shedding light on the financial instability and vulnerability of America’s working class.
These two statistics alone depict most Americans’ financial reality of economic hardship. Moreover, a recent study by the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center found the majority of Americans would score below 50% on a financial literacy test. In a society where monetary motivations seem to dominate popular culture where everything is linked to an economic cost, its citizens ironically lack a fundamental understanding of personal finances. However, in the information age, countless tools, resources and digital applications make empowering an individual’s knowledge accessible, easy and user-friendly.
Albert is a digital finance application that helps individuals improve their financial literacy and allows them to budget, save, invest and manage expenses all in one place. Albert’s purpose is to make personal finance easier for everyday people. Albert’s founders realized many people struggle with money management and created a platform to educate users, promote savings, simplify budgeting and invest in stocks and Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) with as little as $1.
Features of the Albert app
Albert has several key features that make it the perfect app for individuals seeking to improve financial stability and build wealth over time. Moreover, users are allowed to create their own economic preferences or, if they have just started, are given personalized recommendations based on their financial goals.
These unique features contribute to and enhance the all-in-one experience by combining several financial tools and services into a single platform. Users can track their monetary transactions and manage finances without having to switch between apps. Albert features a simple user interface that is easy to navigate and on which users can contact experts and technical support all within the app — making it unique for an optimized financial platform.
Budgeting tools
The Albert app has a unique personal savings framework for user spending patterns, habits and behaviors. The app concisely categorizes the types of purchases, where you purchase them and the percentage of how much is spent. Depending on one’s income and cash flow, the Abert app automatically categorizes every transaction, such as groceries, utilities and entertainment. It allocates small amounts of money based on income and expenses without manual intervention.
With a curated savings method, it eases the process of saving money for users effectively without human financial advisors. In addition, the Albert app rounds up every transaction to the nearest dollar, allowing users to make the most of every penny they have!
Investing options
One clever feature of Albert is the option for users to invest their spare change. Albert also provides educational resources on the basics and benefits of investing, curated portfolios and the investing style best suited for you.
Creating opportunities for users to track, save and invest all in one helps individuals understand the power of small contributions over time and the importance of financial concepts and instruments. Integrating automation and AI helps serve as a driving force for accessibility instead of individuals trying to save with little to no financial literacy.
Cash advances on the Albert app
A cash advance is a type of financial transaction in which an individual can withdraw cash with a credit card or receive money before their paycheck arrives. On the Albert app, one can request a cash advance by simply tapping on the screen. The amount of money one can withdraw in a cash advance is based on income and financial history. After approval, the funds are available almost immediately. After the user is given a cash advancement, the amount is deducted from their incoming paycheck, making repayment seamless.
Cash advances are critical for individuals to access funds during an emergency or unexpected expense. They also provide a secure way to get needed funds when users have limited credit or have a low account balance. Despite this, there are some considerations when requesting a cash advance. Two components of a cash advance are essential for users to understand: fees and interest, and the impact on individual credit.
Cash advances have much higher interest rates than regular credit purchases. A standard credit card has an annual percentage rate (APR) between 21% and 28%, while the APR of a cash advance is above 29%. Too much reliance on and constant usage of cash advances leads to debt accumulation due to accruing interest. If repayments are not met, it can negatively impact one’s credit score, creating more financial debt. However, the Albert app provides transparency of all financial instruments it offers, ensuring that if users utilize cash advances, they understand all rules, rates and regulatory measures of repayments.
High-yield savings account
Unlike most financial apps, the Albert app offers a high yield savings account (HYSA), which offers a higher interest rate than a traditional savings account, which is, on average, 0.46%. HYSAs have rates of 5% or higher. A HYSA helps individuals grow their money quicker over time through compound interest.
On the Albert app, users have an annual percentage yield (APY) of approximately 1%. Apart from this, this type of financial account is FDIC-insured and provides protection for deposits up to $250,000.
Subscription monitoring
A challenging issue for consumers in the digital age is monitoring their service subscriptions or recurring bills, leading to unnecessary spending. By clearly visualizing subscriptions, users are alerted and reminded of forgotten subscriptions, which helps allocate money that is needed elsewhere.
Although subscription costs are much lower than bills, even $10 to $15 per month subscriptions add up throughout the year. A person with five unused subscriptions at $10 per month can save $600 per year. The subscription monitoring features will help save users more money or help them find a better subscription rate suited for their budget.
Identity monitoring
In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) disclosed in 2023, it received 5.39 million reports constituting 48% fraud and 19% identity theft cases. These alarming numbers depict how many individuals are affected by financial crimes and fraud. These statistics raise concerns for individuals regarding economic and personal information safety.
Just over 40% of the cases constituted credit card fraud, while 25.1% were miscellaneous and petty identity theft cases employing sophisticated fraud tactics through online shopping and payment fraud, social media (celebrity endorsement fraud) and email phishing scams.
However, the Albert app provides an identity monitoring feature that protects users’ personal information with 24/7 protection that scans for any suspicious activity involving their identity, credit card(s) and financial accounts. This feature creates trust and ensures safety regarding user’s personal information. If their data is compromised, the Albert app will send alerts along with steps needed to prevent fraud.
Insurance comparison
Albert’s most impressive feature is the insurance comparison tool, which streamlines users’ insurance needs with various options such as life, car and renters insurance. Giving users the accessibility to view and compare insurance types, quotes and providers helps optimize users’ time and save money.
Financial advice
The Albert app provides extensive financial education, resources and support for its users. Specifically, it has a personalized financial advice feature. Users can connect with finance experts in real time, 24/7. Users can ask questions regarding a wide range of finance topics whenever assistance or guidance is needed.
To get the best experience, users can choose between three different subscription options, each tailored to specific financial needs.
Basic Plan: For $11.99 monthly, this plan offers spending and budgeting tracking, spending insights and trends, and a savings plan. Users can also try out the service for 30 days before being charged.
Genius Plan: The Genius subscription plan, which costs $16.99, gives users access to identity protection, credit score monitoring, investing, cashback rewards on debit card purchases, no fees for network ATM withdrawals, and all the features of the basic plan.
Genius+: The Genuis+ plan offers enhanced, immersive, comprehensive financial guidance and assistance. This subscription allows users to access priority support when sending a question or query. Users will receive responses promptly and personalized financial advice, where they can chat with financial advisors about their financial situation via text and video calls. Comprehensive financial planning gives users more data and insights for future purchase decisions in complex financial situations. Finally, it offers users advanced tools centered around investing and savings strategies.
Conclusion
Albert is a tremendous digital application for those seeking to become more financially literate. It allows users to expose themselves to financial instruments and better understand the analytic and technical aspects of one’s overall economic health. It creates more opportunities for individuals to achieve their wealth-building goals, gives users the power to take control of their finances and aligns their goals for a secure financial future.
With over 200,000 five-star reviews, 10 million plus users, $1.5 billion saved and invested on their platform and $5 billion budgeted, tracked and managed, the Albert App highlights its efficiency and effectiveness in creating value for its users. Its user-friendly interface and simplified features make the Albert app the perfect solution for those seeking to understand the essential tools needed to survive and thrive in America’s money-driven society.
Featured image by Firmbee from Pixabay
Edited by James Sutton
