Unpacking children's perceptions of their digital money futures

Children's encounters with money are increasingly shaped by cashless, platform-based, and gaming systems, however limited HCI research examines how children experience and negotiate these changes. This paper presents preliminary findings from a mixed-method, participatory design futuring study with children aged 10-11 in a UK primary school, a key stage when children typically shift from cash to digital money, and experience growing financial autonomy. Conducted over a period of 5 weeks, the study involved surveys, workshops, focus groups, and interviews, exploring children's experiences of multiple economies and visions for future financial systems. Initial findings show that children actively navigate cash, digital money, and in-game currencies, valuing visibility, safety, and control, while expressing concerns about scams and financial harm, particularly in games. Through speculative 'super-inventions,' children's work revealed tensions between protection and autonomy, highlighting opportunities for designing financial technologies that would better support and educate children during this critical transition.