FDIC insurance
US federal coverage of bank deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, per ownership category.
US federal coverage of bank deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, per ownership category.
The FDIC guarantees principal and interest in an insured US bank up to $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, per ownership category - single accounts in one category, joint in another, revocable trusts in another. The categories are what let one person exceed $250,000 legitimately: $250,000 single, plus $250,000 in a joint account with a spouse, both at the same bank, are separately insured.
Coverage follows the institution, not the brand. Banks share charter and ownership; two fintech apps powered by the same insured bank may be one coverage pool, not two - the partner-bank disclosure in the app's terms says where your money actually sits. Credit unions carry parallel NCUSIF coverage with the same limits. Brokered CDs bought through a platform are still bank CDs for insurance purposes, which is one of the cleaner ways to spread coverage across charters deliberately.
Worked example
A couple keeps $300,000 in one joint account at their bank: the joint category covers it fully, while a $400,000 single account at the same bank leaves $150,000 uninsured unless it is split across ownership categories or a second insured charter.
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