Glossary

Safeguarding

The legal requirement for EMIs and PIs to protect customer funds by segregating them at a credit institution (or insuring them) - distinct from deposit protection.

E-money balances are not bank deposits: they are covered by safeguarding, not by the 100k EUR deposit guarantee. The institution must hold customer funds segregated at a bank (or insure them) so they survive its insolvency.

Where those safeguarding accounts sit is a real sovereignty question - an EEA EMI safeguarding at an EEA bank keeps the chain inside EU jurisdiction. Provider failures (Wirecard) are exactly why the catalogue tracks status and risk alongside the licence.

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Related terms

EMI licence (e-money institution) · EEA data residency

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