H&R Block Debuts Spruce Mobile Banking to Help Consumers With Personal Finance

Hoping to help combat economic stress and support financial well-being, H&R Block is debuting a mobile banking platform called Spruce, the company announced Thursday (Jan. 20).

According to the press release, this Spruce solution will “help everyone be good with money,” featuring a debit card and a connected savings account that lets consumers budget for their goals.

Spruce also offers more financial know-how for those who need it, helping maintain financial stability while offering greater access to banking solutions.

Per the release, Spruce was designed to bridge the underbanked divide and make more financial inclusion possible, including the 21 million households that use H&R Block for their tax returns every year.

Some of the benefits of the debit card associated with Spruce include the ability to set savings goals, cash back rewards and a lack of monthly fees. Other features include early paycheck deposits, credit score monitoring and overdraft protection.

“Spruce is a financial technology platform that combines the best features of leading neo-banks with H&R Block’s trusted brand, our 66-year history, and the insights we’ve gained from helping millions of customers every year,” Jeff Jones, president and CEO of H&R Block, said in the release.

“Our front row seat on American life provides a unique understanding of how to help people get better with money, and we’ve applied those learnings to Spruce. Creating and launching Spruce is a huge milestone for our company as we continue to execute on our transformation and growth strategy, Block Horizons 2025,” Jones continued.

PYMNTS wrote last year that H&R Block saw more customers want their refunds as fast as possible, leading to more users utilizing the online filing tool. That said, the disbursement process didn’t catch up to the demand.

See also: H&R Block On Meeting New Tax Refund Disbursement Expectations With Mobile, Prepaid Debit

According to Kathy Pickering, chief tax officer, there’s “a huge opportunity for improvement.”

“What we are seeing is that roughly 80% of tax refunds are issued electronically, which means roughly 20% are issued by a check,” Pickering said. “Now, when you look at the other government benefit programs, like Social Security, they issued [disbursements electronically for] 98% [of payments]. That tells you there is a huge gap that can be improved on.”