How Qonto ensures full and diversified funds protection

💡 In light of the recent turmoil in the banking industry (such as the failure of the US-based Silicon Valley Bank, and UBS’s acquisition of Credit Suisse), we would like to highlight that Qonto's setup, as a regulated EU Payment Institution, offers full protection for our customers’ funds that is at least equivalent to traditional banks. With an account at Qonto, clients already benefit from banking partners diversification. Below, we explain how we protect our clients’ deposits at Qonto.

NB: this page complements our business-as-usual FAQ “How are customers’ funds protected?”

1. Qonto clients’ funds are fully safeguarded in line with EU and French regulations

As a payment institution, Qonto is legally obliged to follow extremely strict regulations and prudential requirements when it comes to protecting customers’ deposits.

Qonto’s own funds are entirely separated from its clients’ funds, which are fully safeguarded in accordance with EU and French regulations applicable to payment institutions. This means that in the case of default of Qonto, clients’ funds would be paid back to clients in their entirety by our partner banks.
Clients funds are protected by Tier 1 French banks:
- 50% of funds are deposited in current safeguarding accounts open in the books of Credit Mutuel Arkea and Natixis / BPCE Group,
- 50% of funds are invested in a fund created specifically for the safeguarding of Qonto clients' assets - managed by Amundi, Europe’s largest asset manager - and fully guaranteed by Crédit Agricole / CACIB.
These safeguarding mechanisms have been subject to prior authorization by the ACPR, the French prudential authority.

2. Qonto clients benefit from a level of deposit protection at least equal to, or greater than, traditional banks

Through its safeguarding mechanisms, Qonto offers a level of protection to clients’ deposits that is, at least, equivalent to traditional banks:

In the case of default of Qonto [very unlikely, see point 4.], clients’ funds would be paid back to clients in their entirety by our safeguarding banks under the ACPR supervision.
In the case of default of one of our safeguarding banks [extremely unlikely], each client is protected up to €100,000 per failing institution, i.e. up to €200,000 if both our partners were to fail (therefore offering protection that is equivalent to having an account in each of these banks). This mechanism is based on the transposition into French law of the European Deposit Guarantee Scheme Directive, which protects funds held by Credit Institutions in case of crisis.
In the case of default of our guarantor CACIB [extremely unlikely], Qonto will find a new guarantor to cover the invested amount, or these funds will be safeguarded in a current account at another partner bank or in qualified money market funds, as authorized by the ACPR.

Thanks to the diversification of its safeguarding partners, Qonto is, therefore, able to offer a level of protection that is higher than any single traditional bank.

Further information about clients’ deposit protection is available on this other FAQ, as well as on this page (in French) from the ABE Info Services website maintained by the ACPR and the French Central Bank.

3. Qonto can support companies looking to diversify their deposits base

As the saying goes “don’t put all your eggs in the same basket”. Qonto has worked extensively to diversify its customer funds protection mechanism with top Tier 1 French banks. 350,000 SMEs across France, Germany, Italy, and Spain trust Qonto on a daily basis.

Qonto can help any company to:

Diversify their deposits base through its diversified banking partner setup (see point 2.),
Open accounts in just a few hours, 7 days a week,
Simplify their finance management: including business banking, spend management, expense management, invoicing, financing, bookkeeping and accounting,
Enjoy a great service that has the best ratings in its category: 4.6 on Trustpilot, 4.8 on App Store, 4.7 on Play Store.

4. Qonto’s financial position is very solid

Qonto has no direct or indirect links with Silicon Valley Bank, or to any other US-based banks, and only work with the banks with the best credit ratings. As a matter of fact, all of Qonto’s customer funds are protected by 3 Tier 1 French banks.

After its €486M Series D announced in January 2022, Qonto is in a very strong financial position and keeps growing at a rapid pace.

5. Qonto operates in a solid and resilient banking environment

The EU banking sector is very solid, following its complete overhaul in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and the 2009 sovereign debt crisis. Very strict prudential requirements and intrusive supervision apply to all EU banks, making a SVB-type crisis in the EU very unlikely.

As for Credit Suisse, it’s worth noting that this bank is based in Switzerland - not the EU - where slightly different rules apply. Regardless, this example offers reassuring insights into how a bank crisis can be managed. When the crisis broke out, the Swiss authorities intervened quickly to prevent the bank from collapsing, and they approved its takeover by its rival UBS less than a few days later, to protect depositors and the broader financial market.

💬 If you have a question, please reach out to our support team at [email protected] (or Key Account Managers if you have a Business or Enterprise plan).