Do you have over $250,000 deposited in one bank account or at one bank? If so, you’ll want to check and see if your bank is part of the IntraFi network.
For banks and credit unions that aren’t part of the network, customers’ deposits are usually insured up to just $250,000 per account type. That means, if you have more on deposit, you could potentially lose money if your financial institution fails. Some people experienced this firsthand in 2023 as a result of the regional bank crisis.
But if your bank is a member of the IntraFi network, your personal or business deposits can be insured against losses up to $150 million.
The IntraFi network is a service that gives you more insurance for your bank deposits by spreading your money across multiple banks.
Most banks and credit unions have insurance through the FDIC or NCUA, but it only covers deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution, per ownership category. For many people, that’s more than enough coverage.
However, after the regional bank crisis of 2023, high-deposit consumers realized they may need more protection. During the crisis, five banks failed in rapid succession, including First Republic Bank and Citizens Bank. Since then, banks have looked for ways to adopt higher coverage amounts for their customers.
Now, in 2026, over 3,000 financial institutions are part of the IntraFi network. If your bank participates, you likely have access to a few different personal or business account types that give millions in insurance coverage. IntraFi coverage applies to two different categories of bank accounts:
Insured cash sweep (ICS): Coverage for demand accounts such as checking, savings and money market accounts.
Certificate of deposit account registry service (CDARS): Coverage for certificates of deposit (CDs).
If you’re looking for deposit insurance over $250,000, here’s how the IntraFI network can help:
Initial deposit: Locate a bank that’s in the IntraFi network and deposit your money to an ICS or CDARS account.
Agreements: Sign a Deposit Placement Agreement and custodial agreement.
Bank placement: Your bank will spread the money across FDIC-insured institutions, in increments of less than $250,000 (the maximum amount depends on the bank’s policy) in order to ensure your deposits and interest earnings will be covered.
Rates and fees: Your bank sets the rate you earn on your accounts, even if the money is spread to other institutions. Those other institutions will not charge you any fees.
Account management: Although your money is spread to other banks, you can still manage your full balance through your main bank. That includes viewing bank statements and making withdrawals and transfers.
To illustrate how it works, let’s say you deposit $500,000 into a savings account at Bank A, which belongs to the IntraFi network. Bank A keeps $200,000 in place, and spreads the remaining amount to Bank B, Bank C, and Bank D in increments of $100,000. Ultimately, you have money deposited at four different banks, but you can manage it all through Bank A.
Read more: How much money should you keep in a savings account?
There are over 3,000 financial institutions in the IntraFi network, including some of the largest banks in the U.S.:
Bank of America
Capital One Bank
Citibank
Citizens Bank
Truist Bank
Wells Fargo Bank
To find out if your financial institution is part of the network, you can check Intrafi’s list of banks. You can also check your bank’s website to see if IntraFi, ICS, or CDARS are mentioned, or ask a representative of your bank.
Doing business with a bank in the IntraFi network can provide you with a lot of security and convenience. These are some of the main benefits you can expect:
More protection: Get insurance for deposits over $250,000.
Less effort: Spread your money across multiple banks without having to open multiple accounts.
Less management: You only have to manage one bank account and one banking relationship.
Fewer fees: Enjoy the benefit of having multiple accounts covered without having to pay fees to each bank.
Easier tax filing: You only have to deal with tax documents for one bank account.
While the IntraFi network makes it easy to obtain more insurance coverage, that coverage comes with trade-offs. Here are some reasons you might not want to go with IntraFi for banking:
Less choice: You don’t get to choose where your money is placed.
Lower rates: Interest rates are usually lower than what you can find when you search for bank accounts on your own.
Money you deposit through banks in the IntraFi network is most definitely safe. In fact, it can be safer than depositing money with non-network banks, since you get access to more insurance coverage.
Yes, depositing into the IntraFi network means your money can be spread across multiple banks, but every dollar is insured by the FDIC. That means you have the full faith and credit of the U.S. government to protect you in case of a bank failure. If your bank does fail, the FDIC will reimburse you for the full, covered amount or transfer your money to another bank.
-1024x768.jpg "Red Snapper Used as Cudgel by Fed Judge")
