FDIC: Deposit Insurance (2024)

FAQs

What is FDIC deposit insurance? ›

The FDIC protects the money depositors place in insured banks in the unlikely event of an insured-bank failure. Each depositor is insured to at least $250,000 per insured bank. FDIC deposit insurance covers all types of deposits held at an insured bank.

The standard deposit insurance coverage limit is $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per ownership category. Deposits held in different ownership categories are separately insured, up to at least $250,000, even if held at the same bank.

The FDIC insures up to $250,000 per account holder, insured bank and ownership category in the event of bank failure. If you have more than $250,000 in the bank, or you're approaching that amount, you may want to structure your accounts to make sure your funds are covered.

If a couple has a joint money market deposit account, a joint savings account, and a joint CD at the same insured bank, each co-owner's shares of the three accounts are added together and insured up to $250,000 per owner, providing up to $500,000 in coverage for the couple's joint accounts.

FDIC insurance covers traditional deposit accounts, and depositors do not need to apply for FDIC insurance. Coverage is automatic whenever a deposit account is opened at an FDIC-insured bank or financial institution.

Wealthy people do not leave large amounts of money in saving/checking accounts earning no interest or income. Instead they invest their money in stocks, bonds, real estate, mutual funds, etc.

Each co-owner of a joint account is insured up to $250,000 for the combined amount of his or her interests in all joint accounts at the same IDI. In determining a co-owner's interest in a joint account, the FDIC assumes each co-owner is an equal owner unless the IDI records clearly indicate otherwise.

But fewer than one percent–just 0.83 percent–of these accounts have more than $250,000. It is true that almost 60 percent of total deposits, by dollar amount, is in those accounts. But relatively few accounts have balances greater than $250,000, and only the amount above the cap is uninsured.

Should you put more than 250k in a CD? ›

However, federally insured banks and credit unions only insure up to $250,000 per depositor per account ownership category. If you put more than this amount in a single CD, some of your money will be at risk. You can still safely invest more than $250,000 in CDs by opening accounts at multiple financial institutions.

Ideally, you can live off the interest without touching your investment principal. While many investors may not be able to live off the interest from $250,000, it could supplement other sources of retirement income to meet their needs.

Note on Beneficiaries: While some self-directed retirement Accounts, like IRAs, permit the owner to name one or more beneficiaries, the existence of beneficiaries does not increase the available insurance coverage.

The Six-month Rule (12 C.F.R. § 330.4)

This grace period is intended to give depositors an opportunity to restructure their accounts if the merger causes a depositor to have funds in excess of the insurance limits at the acquiring IDI.

Joint bank account holders generally have the right of survivorship, which grants the surviving account holder ownership of the entire account balance. The surviving account holder retains ownership regardless of which owner contributed the money, and the account doesn't go through the probate process.

The truth is that federal law requires the FDIC to pay deposit insurance "as soon as possible." For insured deposits — those within the deposit insurance limits — the FDIC almost always pays insured depositors within a few business days of a closing, usually the next business day.

Cons. Now, for the minuses: Money that exceeds the limit won't be covered. Should you have more than $250,000 in all the insured deposit accounts with a bank, keeping it all in one place doesn't make sense.