Restricted licence

hey anybody at Monzo HQ - with a restricted licence are you - or any other “bank” allowed to offer full FCA cover for 85k of deposits

The FCSC cover is not applicable to the prepaid card

The FCSC cover will apply to Monzo current accounts when launched

I believe they cannot provide that level of protection. Currently, all funds on prepaid cards are not held by Monzo, and are ring-fenced by Wirecard(?).

Now they are in ‘mobilisation’ they can hold £50,000 in total (across all customers) hence the internal-only testing of the current card at the moment.

Ive just had an interesting prolonged obfuscating chat with Starling who are insisting on their website with a restricted licence that they can cover 85K of customer deposits , but couldn’t accept 85K from an individual depositor at present - I find some of their website misleading at best and am surprised a potential bank can make these sort of claims - maybe they have a different card “classification”

  • Chat started on 04 Apr 2017, 01:37 PM (GMT+0)
    referring to Starlings website about deposit protection
    me- what does if your deposit is “eligible” mean
    *** Sanjay joined the chat ***
    Sanjay: Hey :slight_smile:
    Sanjay: Could you clarify what you mean?
    me -hey sorry joined a new chat - on your website it says safe secure protected
    me -and then goes on to say if your deposit is eligible
    Sanjay: Ok, so “Eligible” deposits means money that you hold in starling bank
    me -so if I deposit 85K in the account that would be OK - could I deposit 85K though ?
    Sanjay: Yes, but if you are looking for clarification on the protections, we would recommend that you go to the FSCS website here:
    Sanjay: https://www.fscs.org.uk/what-we-cover/products/banks-building-societies/
    me -so under your restricted licence how much customer deposits can you hold ?
    Sanjay: Unfortunately we can’t provide that information via live chat, however for more information, I would have to refer you back to FSCS regarding this
    me -is it not a maximum of 50K total customer deposits that you are allowed to hold - total for all customers
    Sanjay: I’m sorry, but as I have said, I’d not be able to discuss the details or restrictions of the restricted license and must refer you to the FSCS website for further details
    me -Im asking you as a bank what protection my money has - on your restricted licence ? your website says I am fully covered up to 85K would you let me deposit 85K into your bank ?
    Sanjay: Your money has the full protection as outlined on the FSCS website. Any restrictions on our license are not impacted by your protections as outlined in the link I previously provided :slight_smile:
    Sanjay: Therefore you would be able to claim on the amount of funds you would hold with us as eligible deposits in your Starling account as we previously discussed.
    me -so I can deposit 85K into starling bank and my money would be fully protected
    Sanjay: We are currently in the Beta. As previously mentioned, any funds deposited are protected up to the amount as stated on the FSCS website.
    Sanjay: Is there anything else I can help with today while I’m here?
    me -can i deposit 85K into a starling account a simple yes or no ?
    Sanjay: While we are in Beta, no. This is not a possibility. Once we in the public domain, you will be able to deposit as much money as you desire :slight_smile:
    me -so when you say on your website 85K is protected you won’t allow me to deposit this amount at present ?
    Sanjay: No, when we say that up to 85K is protected, this is a protection as outlined by the FSCS. While you are currently unable to deposit this much currently, you are still protected up to this amount as guaranteed by the FSCS.
    me -but you cant allow me to deposit this amount because of your restricted licence ?
    Sanjay: Correct. Which is why we are currently in Beta, and individuals on a small batch basis :slight_smile:
    Sanjay: We are pleased with your interest in Starling and hope that you will be able to create an account shortly once we are fully in the public domain.
    Sanjay: Is there anything else I can help with today?
    me -yes please - so all your deposits at the moment are covered by the FSCS and will be paid out of their funds should you go bust ?
    Sanjay: Yes. As I have said and as stated on the FSCS website, all funds are covered up to the amount stated :slight_smile:
    me -and all your deposits are covered by the FSCS and will be covered by them under your restricted licence ?
    Sanjay: Yes. I am sorry, but I have explained this several times now. I really must refer you to the FSCS if you have any further queries about details regarding the protection they offer. If there is nothing further I would have to wish you a pleasant day and wish you all the best.
    me -ok thanks
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Are Starling still under a restricted licence? According to their application page they aren’t in mobilisation and have no restrictions.

Apologies if my information is inaccurate/out-of-date.

https://register.fca.org.uk/ShPo_FirmDetailsPage?id=001b000002sy7IMAAY

Edit: Monzo’s page for comparison https://register.fca.org.uk/ShPo_FirmDetailsPage?id=001b000002syvKiAAI

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they are - but are very very reticent about telling anybody they are

Hey @iansilversides We don’t offer full cover to this value under the pre-paid card scheme :disappointed:

I know that @naji , but can anybody under a restricted licence ?

@anon95680666 I don’t believe so.

well CS at Starling are saying they can - ?

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i wonder why…

hmmm… [quote=“iansilversides, post:6, topic:8108, full:true”]
they are - but are very very reticent about telling anybody they are
[/quote]

Well, I think we have learnt one thing today.

Monzo’s communication both internally and externally is obviously miles ahead of Starling.

Agreed?

6 Likes

It’s a bit strange because the FCA listing for Monzo is very clear that there are restrictions on Monzo license, whereas there aren’t restrictions listed for Starling’s. But this suggests that they do have some

& Megan (their CTO) didn’t want to confirm that they have an unrestricted license when Ian & I asked about it on Twitter too.

Plus Starling love to announce anything & everything but as far as I know, they’ve never promoted the fact that they have a full license which is one of the biggest milestones, that they & Monzo are working towards :thinking:

3 Likes

yes surely this is misleading potential customers and seeing as they are currently being “audited” by FSCS to gain their full licence would potentially be a big no no by the FSCS to say that FSCS guarantee their customer deposits

We are in the age of where we want to trust our banks, but if anything Starling aren’t instilling trust. Customer service is if anything (I believe) greater than the product a company offer.

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I agree , but I think we are missing the point of Starling banks CS - while still operating under restricted licence “misleading” customers as to their protections for their customers / potential customers money

It is real clear to me. FCSC protection and a restricted license are separate issues. By holding a banking license the customer is covered up to £85K however due to license restrictions they can’t accept such high deposits, so while you may not be able to deposit as much as £85K what you do will be covered as an amount below that limit. FCSC protection is for banks with a banking license and different levels of protection are not given for banks with deposit restrictions, the same cover limits apply. God knows what the Starling Customer Service guy rambled on so long and could not clarify that

4 Likes

hundred percent agree with you

“FCSC is for banks with a banking licence”

do you think FSCS covers banks with a restricted licence ? Starling seem to think they do - or at least say they do - - the logic being the B of E and regulators want to see that the restricted bank can operate its systems etc before it takes on their liabilities of depositors money should they go bust , so by that logic they are not covered before the restricted licence bank can prove they have sufficient systems in place to operate i.e. they have lifted their restrictions ?

My understanding of the EU Regulations and the UK Legislation behind the FCSC Deposit protection scheme is that it covers accounts at banks holding a banking license and that there are no restrictive caveats for those license holders with restrictions on the level of deposits they can accept. Speaking to the FCSC helpdesk was not much use as while they knew about the £85K/£170K/£1M standard limits (for single/joint/temporary limits) they weren’t sure about impact of mobilisation or license restrictions on available cover but had no information to indicate any exclusion or derigation from the statutory cover in those circumstances.

1 Like