Chip launches FSCS protected savings accounts with ClearBank

ClearBank’s BaaS proposition will provide Chip’s users with FSCS-protected accounts and the ability to deposit and withdraw funds in real-time

Digital savings and investment platform Chip has launched new savings accounts with FSCS protection through a banking-as-a-service deal with ClearBank.

Through ClearBank’s banking-as-a-service (BaaS) proposition, Chip savings accounts are now covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) on deposits up to £85,000 and connected to Faster Payments for real-time withdrawals.

Clearbank is a cloud-based clearing bank, and the first new clearing bank entity over 250 years. It partners with other fintechs and banks with its clearing services accessible via an API.  It was founded by serial entrepreneur Nick Ogden in 2017 and its current CEO is Charles McManus.

“As we continue on our mission to build the best savings app in the world, we needed a banking partner to improve our offering with better security, a seamless customer experience, and provide a springboard for our expansion into the rest of Europe,” said Simon Rabin, CEO of Chip. 

“Fintech is no longer in its infancy—the market is maturing quickly, as are the banking requirements of fintech businesses. And as banking requirements change, so does the way they need to be delivered,” said Charles McManus, CEO of ClearBank.

 “We are entering the era of Embedded Banking, where pioneering firms like Chip want to integrate innovative banking services without the cost and complexity of becoming a bank. 

Chip, he says, is ClearBank’s first consumer-facing customer.

By connecting to a user’s current account via Open Banking, Chip’s platform builds savings for its 400,000 users automatically, based on their spending habits and income - with over £600 million saved to date.