Real-time spending app helps Canadians spend less

TORONTO, April 19, 2017 /CNW/ - Since launching last April, close to 1,000,000 Canadians have signed up for TD MySpend, a mobile money management app that makes it easier to track spending habits and gain greater control over personal and family finances. The app features instant notifications, spending insights and category tracking to give users greater insights into their spending.

"TD MySpend provides customers with the ability to adjust their spending behaviours in real-time, and in ways that fit with their lifestyle," said Rizwan Khalfan, Chief Digital and Payments Officer, TD. "The success of TD MySpend is built on the trusted relationship that we have with our customers. Based on their feedback, we plan to add even more robust features to TD MySpend on an ongoing basis."

How App Users Spend

Coffee and Cravings: Spending on morning coffee routines and afternoon snacks adds up. According to TD MySpend data, app users spend most frequently on dining out. Most spending occurs in small increments – between $5 and $8 dollars each time.

Home Sweet Home: For TD MySpend users, the top spending category by dollar amount was on home-related purchases, with mortgage, insurance and renovation costs leading in terms of where our money goes.

Leaving Cash in the Past: Only 12% of all TD MySpend transactions were cash withdrawals. The vast majority were digital or card transactions.

Move Me: TD MySpend users spend as much on transportation as they do on groceries.

Who Spends Less?

The More You Use It… On average, frequent TD MySpend users (those who use the app one to five times per month) are spending 8% less per month, while occasional users (those who use the app at least once a month) are spending an average of 4% less per month.

More About TD MySpend Users:

• Millennials trust TD MySpend: 25% of active app users are between the ages of 18 and 25 years old; 33% are between 25 and 35.
• Notify me: More than 500,000 TD MySpend users have signed up for instant push notifications so they can be alerted each time a transaction is made – giving them the opportunity to adjust their spending in real-time and make adjustments if need be.

A companion app for iPhone and Android, TD MySpend uses a traffic-light spending insights meter to provide users with a snapshot of whether they are above, at, or below their typical spending with each transaction from eligible TD bank accounts or TD credit cards. Everything is automatic, and based on a user's historic spending, with no need to manually enter expenses or link up accounts. Close to 1 million TD customers use the app to track spending from over 2.4 million TD chequing and savings accounts.

"When we created the app and worked with TD to introduce it as TD MySpend to their customers, our goal was simple – provide people with visibility into their spending so they can make more informed decisions going forward," said Brett King, CEO, Moven. "It sounds simple, but with busy lifestyles, many individuals struggle to find time to understand their finances and we wanted to use innovation to solve for this. Through this relationship with TD, we've been able to deliver this experience to close to a million TD customers, and we're thrilled it's adding real value to their lives."

Innovation at TD

TD continues to develop relationships with fintechs including Moven and Flybits to work on leading digital solutions for more than 25 million customers.

• Moven, a digital financial platform developer, played a key role in creating TD MySpend.
• TD has worked with Flybits, creators of cloud-based experience management software, to develop TD for Me, a digital concierge enhancement to the popular TD app.
• TD Lab explores innovation at the cross-section of emerging technology, new customer experiences, and business models, with an additional focus on engaging with startups, helping foster an internal innovation culture and developing the next generation of tech talent for the bank.

See the user experience here: https://go.td.com/1XEIKyy

About TD Bank Group

The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank"). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves 25 million customers in three key businesses operating in a number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD Wealth (Canada), TD Direct Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth (U.S.), and an investment in TD Ameritrade; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with over 11 million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$1.2 trillion in assets on January 31, 2017. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

SOURCE TD Bank Group