How Silverbird looks after your money
In this document, we want to explain how Silverbird protects your money through "safeguarding" and how that’s different from how banks preserve your money in the UK.
First of all, it’s important to understand that Silverbird is not a bank. Silverbird is a technology platform that works through Currencycloud — a regulated Electronic Money Institution in the UK and Netherlands.
We protect your money through a process known as safeguarding. Regulators require that we keep your money separate from ours. 100% of your money is kept at reputable UK and EU banks.
Read further to learn more about what that means for you and your business.
Silverbird is a collective name for Silverbird Global Limited and Silverbird Europe UAB.
Silverbird is not a bank.
Silverbird Global Limited is an electronic money institution which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA") under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuance of electronic money, and the provision of payment services (FRN: 942055). Head office of Silverbird Global Limited is at: One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AB.
Silverbird Global Limited also acts as an appointed representative of The Currency Cloud Limited. In such cases, the payment services are provided by The Currency Cloud Limited. Registered in England No. 06323311. Registered Office: Stewardship Building 1st Floor, 12 Steward Street London E1 6FQ. The Currency Cloud Limited is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuing of electronic money (FRN: 900199).
Silverbird Europe UAB is an appointed representative of Currencycloud B.V. Payment services are provided by Currencycloud B.V. Registered in The Netherlands No. 72186178. Registered Office: Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 296-298, 1012 RT Amsterdam Netherlands. Currencycloud B.V. is authorised by the De Nederlandsche Bank under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuing of electronic money (FRN: R142701).
Clients' money is safeguarded with reputable UK and EU banks. Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) does not apply.
Yes, your funds are safeguarded with UK and EU banks following all the requirements and regulations of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA in the UK) or De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB in the Netherlands, EU). This means your funds are never moved without your instructions, invested, or lent to anyone else. In the unlikely event of Silverbird’s bankruptcy, you should get your money back minus cost of administrator or liquidator of the firm.
We use industry-leading TLS encryption protocols to keep your data safe, as well as two-factor authentication to make sure all the actions on our banking platform are indeed taken by yourself or an authorized member of your team.
To learn more visit the FCA or DNB website
Silverbird and its partners are required by law to separate clients' money from its funds.
By doing this, it ensures that if anything were to happen to Silverbird or its partners, your claims are to be paid from the safeguarding account in priority to all other creditors.
To explain in more detail: once an e-money institution receives your money, it must either place it in a dedicated "safeguarding account" with a bank or invest it in low-risk assets that the regulator has approved as an alternative to cash. Less commonly, it may protect the money with an insurance policy instead. Your money must stay in these accounts or investments until you spend it.
The protection this provides means that if an e-money institution fails, there should be a pot of money (the safeguarding account) sufficient to pay all customers the money they are owed. Your claims are to be paid from these safeguarding account in priority to all other creditors. The only thing that can be paid from these safeguarding accounts before the customers are paid back their e-money is the cost of the administrator or liquidator (the person who’s appointed to manage the closure of a failed company).
When you keep money with an e-money institution, it’s safeguarded instead of having FSCS protection (which is sometimes referred to as "deposit insurance").
The main difference between FSCS protection and safeguarding is as follows: UK-authorised banks, building societies or credit unions are protected by the FSCS. If one of these firms fails or become insolvent, the FSCS will protect your money up to £85,000 per depositor.
In case of e-money institutions (like Silverbird or its partner Currencycloud), the regulator requires them to keep your money separate from their own money. The money in the safeguarding account should always equal the money you provided to an EMI and cannot be moved out without your instructions. This means that, if an EMI goes out of business, you should get your money back minus the costs incurred by the administrator or liquidator of the firm. In some cases, it could take longer to be refunded than it would with a bank.
Your money is kept in safeguarding accounts with reputable banks in the UK and EU, such as Barclays Bank PLC* in the UK.
* Barclays Bank PLC does not monitor the funds that are placed on the safeguarding account or how you operate these accounts
Regulators require that we keep your money separate from ours. 100% of your money is kept at reputable UK and EU banks. If we go out of business, you should get your money back minus the costs of the administrator or liquidator of the firm.
