Raisin partners exclusively with federally insured banks and credit unions, so your savings are safe up to the applicable limits.

Federal deposit insurance provides coverage for the cash savings held by banks and by credit unions on behalf of their customers and members, respectively. There are two main agencies that provide this coverage: the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).

In the event that a financial institution backed by one of these agencies somehow becomes insolvent and cannot honor the deposits it has been holding for its customers (for banks) or members (for credit unions), then the FDIC and NCUA would provide the funds to those individuals in order for them to recoup their losses, dollar-for-dollar. Generally, the amount of coverage is limited to $250,000 per depositor, per institution, per account ownership category. For joint accounts, the covered amount increases by $250,000 per co-owner.

FDIC and NCUA insurance are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. According to the FDIC, no depositor has lost a penny of FDIC-insured funds since 1933. And, per the NCUA, credit union members have never lost a penny of insured savings at a federally insured credit union.

For this reason, keeping your cash in a bank or in a credit union offering deposit insurance through the federal government stands in stark contrast to stocks, bonds, and other types of investments where there’s no institutional protection against loss of principal. In short, holding cash in a federally insured bank or credit union is very safe relative to other forms of assets.

FDIC insurance

For Raisin customers who hold savings products offered by one of our partner banks, funds are insured through the FDIC’s Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) up to the maximum amount in accordance with and as permitted by law at each bank holding their funds.

The standard deposit insurance coverage limit is $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per account ownership category. Ownership categories as defined by the FDIC include single bank accounts (owned by one person/depositor) and joint bank accounts (owned by two or more persons/depositors). Revocable trust accounts and some types of retirement accounts (e.g., IRAs) are among the other ownership categories covered by FDIC insurance.

All deposits you have at a bank — whether made through Raisin or otherwise — count toward the deposit insurance limit. If funds held at a bank in a certain ownership category exceed the coverage limit, then the amount in excess of the limit will not be insured.

This means that if your individual savings account(s) at a particular bank hold/s in excess of $250,000 in cumulative deposits, you would be exposed to risk of loss in the uncommon event of the bank’s failure for the amount exceeding $250,000.

Refer to fdic.gov for more information about FDIC insurance.

NCUA insurance

For Raisin customers who hold savings products offered by one of our partner credit unions, funds are insured by the NCUA through its Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF). According to the NCUA, each credit union member has at least $250,000 in total coverage. The NCUSIF insures individual accounts up to $250,000. Additionally, a member’s interest in all joint accounts combined is insured up to $250,000 per co-owner.

Refer to ncua.gov for more information about NCUA insurance.

Where does the money come from in the event these agencies must bail out an insured institution?

The FDIC notes that its Deposit Insurance Fund is made up of premiums that insured banks have paid and interest earnings on its investment portfolio of U.S. Treasury securities. Federal or state tax revenues don’t contribute to the Deposit Insurance Fund. Likewise, the NCUSIF’s funding sources include capitalization deposits from insured credit unions, guarantee fees, premium payments and U.S. Treasury securities.