FDIC ownership categories.
In plain English
FDIC deposit insurance covers 250,000 dollars per depositor, per bank, but the phrase per depositor is really per ownership category. Ownership categories, such as single accounts, joint accounts, certain retirement accounts, and trust accounts, are each insured separately, so one person can be covered for well over 250,000 dollars at a single bank by holding money across different categories. A joint account, for instance, insures each co-owner up to 250,000 dollars, and a properly structured trust can add coverage per beneficiary. Understanding the categories is how savers keep large balances fully insured.
01Why it matters
The categories are how a saver keeps more than 250,000 dollars fully insured at one bank, so knowing them matters for anyone holding a large cash balance.
02The math, step by step
A married couple holds a joint account insured up to 500,000 dollars, 250,000 dollars per co-owner, plus each has a single account insured up to 250,000 dollars, giving them 1 million dollars of coverage at one bank.
03What this is NOT
FDIC coverage is NOT a flat 250,000 dollars per person per bank. The limit applies per ownership category, so holding money across single, joint, and trust categories can insure far more at the same bank.
04Receipts
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