Cash savings platforms: look through the platform to the banks

A cash platform can make it easier to view or manage deposits with several banks. It does not necessarily create a new deposit-protection limit on top of every account you already hold elsewhere.

To understand the position, map the underlying banks and the beneficial owner of each deposit. The platform total is an administrative view; the protection calculation may need to combine money across several routes into the same authorised institution.

Identify where each deposit actually sits

Obtain the legal bank name and relevant authorisation for each selected savings product. Keep that information beside the account balance, term, interest rate and maturity date.

Do not rely only on a trading name. Two different brands can share an authorisation, while businesses within a broader group may have separate authorisations. Check the actual entity rather than inferring the answer from logos.

FSCS's deposit-protection questions explain that eligible money held beneficially through client accounts can count alongside money held directly at the same bank. The standard current deposit limit is £120,000 per eligible person per authorised institution.

Combine direct and platform balances

Suppose a person holds £85,000 directly with a bank and another £50,000 through a cash platform at that same authorised bank. The combined exposure is £135,000.

Assuming ordinary eligible deposits and no additional temporary-high-balance protection, that is £15,000 above the standard £120,000 limit. The platform's separate account reference does not itself create another personal limit at that bank.

Now suppose the platform deposit is instead held with a separately authorised bank where the person has no other deposits. The calculation changes because the underlying institution changes, not because the website used to open the account changed.

Allow for accrued interest and incoming payments

A balance just below the limit can rise as interest is credited or money arrives from another maturing account. Keep the expected balance, not only today's snapshot, in the protection schedule.

For example, £118,000 plus a £3,000 interest payment becomes £121,000. Under the same ordinary assumptions, £1,000 would then sit above the standard limit.

This does not prescribe how much headroom every saver should maintain. It shows why a plan using exact limits needs monitoring and a clear understanding of interest timing.

Check money in transit or awaiting allocation

A platform may use a transaction or hub account before funds reach the chosen deposit. Ask where money sits while waiting, who holds it and which protection arrangements apply during that stage.

Also establish what happens at maturity. If several deposits return to one hub account at once, the interim position can differ from the spread shown while the deposits were active.

Record those cash routes in the same worksheet as the final banks. A plan that checks only the end destinations can miss a concentration arising temporarily during transfers.

Distinguish bank failure from platform failure

The bank's obligation to repay a deposit and the platform's administrative role are separate. Ask how ownership records are maintained and how you would access or evidence the deposits if the platform stopped operating.

Do not assume that the platform's own regulatory status makes every possible loss eligible for the same compensation. The relevant entity, activity and cause of loss need to be established.

Keep statements that identify the underlying deposits and your beneficial entitlement. A single dashboard screenshot showing a grand total may be insufficient for resolving an ownership or allocation query later.

Include product restrictions in the comparison

Spreading money across banks does not make fixed-term deposits instantly accessible. Check withdrawal rights, notice periods and whether an advertised maturity date leaves time for the money to reach your spending account.

Compare net interest after any platform charge and the administrative convenience provided. A slightly higher quoted rate may not be advantageous if fees or access restrictions do not suit the intended use.

Use FSCS's bank and savings checker as a starting point, and confirm product-specific arrangements with the provider. Recheck after a bank allocation changes or a large deposit matures.

Related reading covers planning with a large cash sum, planning after a property sale and financial advice after an inheritance. The practical result should be a bank-by-bank map showing where the money is, when it is available and how the protection calculation has been made.