To handle this lack of control, many parents prefer to set-up a Minor's Trust, instead. This term can be extended if the child agrees to it. Parents often act as the Trustee of these types of Trusts with no adverse effect. Frequently, this right has a limited time period, such as 30 days after the receipt of notice. It allows you to give away money and yet not actually let them have NOW and get the gift tax-exclusion.
Trusts are flexible.
You can hold virtually ALL types of assets in Trust, not just cash, mutual funds and stocks. You can also put any number of provisions in the trust documents. For example, you could set-up both a trust and a custodial account. Trusts are more expensive than regular custodial accounts which are cost-free. In addition, there are ongoing expenses for trust administration and tax-return preparation as well, so all this must be considered before creating one.