Is Tide safe?
How Tide works with ClearBank, why eligible balances are FSCS protected up to £120,000, and what to check before you move your business money.
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The short answer
Tide is safe to use for a UK business. It is not a bank itself, but Tide Business Current Accounts are Powered by ClearBank — a UK clearing bank — and eligible deposits are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £120,000 per eligible depositor. That is the same headline protection you get from a fully licensed digital bank such as Starling or Monzo.
The structure
Four things to understand
Tide is not itself a bank
Tide is a financial platform. It builds the app, the card and the tools, but it does not hold a UK banking licence in its own name.
Your account is Powered by ClearBank
Tide Business Current Accounts are provided in partnership with ClearBank Limited, a UK clearing bank authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Eligible balances are FSCS protected up to £120,000
Because the money sits with ClearBank, eligible deposits are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £120,000 per eligible depositor.
The card is issued under Mastercard
The Tide Mastercard runs on the Mastercard network, so it carries the same chargeback and fraud protections as any other business Mastercard.
Your money
How your balance is actually held
Where the money physically sits
Funds in your Tide business current account are held at ClearBank, not by Tide. If Tide the company ran into trouble, your balance would not be part of its assets.
What the £120,000 figure means
The FSCS limit rose from £85,000 to £120,000. It applies per eligible depositor per banking licence, so it is the ClearBank licence that counts — if you hold other accounts with ClearBank-powered providers, the limit is shared across them.
Who is eligible
Most small UK businesses — sole traders, small partnerships and small limited companies — are eligible depositors. Very large companies and certain financial firms are not.
Holding more than the limit
If your balance regularly exceeds £120,000, spread it across providers on different banking licences rather than relying on one.
Instant Saver
Tide Instant Saver balances are also held with ClearBank and treated the same way for protection purposes, and it is where the £125 half of the NEW200 reward is earned.
Security
What protects the account day to day
Strong customer authentication
Card payments and logins use two-factor checks in line with UK rules.
Card freeze and limits
You can freeze the card instantly in the app and set per-card spending limits for team members.
24/7 fraud line
A round-the-clock fraud number on every plan, including the free one.
Confirmation of Payee
Name checks on outgoing payments to catch misdirected and scam transfers before they leave.
Biometric app access
Face or fingerprint unlock, with device binding so a stolen password alone is not enough.
Reimbursement rules
Tide is inside the UK's authorised push payment reimbursement regime, which sets standards for refunding scam victims.
Stay safe
Four rules that stop most fraud
- Never share a one-time passcode with anyone who calls you, including someone claiming to be from Tide.
- Tide will never ask you to move money to a 'safe account' — that instruction is always a scam.
- Referral rewards are paid into your Tide account automatically; nobody should ask you for a fee to release them.
- Only apply through tide.co or a referral link that lands on tide.co — check the address bar before entering details.
Regulation
Who regulates what, exactly
The single most common confusion about Tide is the relationship between Tide and the bank behind it. Here is the structure in plain terms.
Tide is an e-money and payments platform
Tide Platform Limited provides the app, the tools and the customer relationship. It is not itself a bank and does not hold a banking licence.
ClearBank holds the money
Tide Business Current Accounts are Powered by ClearBank. ClearBank is a fully licensed UK bank, authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority.
That is why FSCS applies
Because the balance sits with a licensed bank rather than in an e-money wallet, eligible deposits are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £120,000 per depositor.
Mastercard rails for the card
The Tide card runs on Mastercard, so it carries the same acceptance and dispute processes as any other Mastercard business card.
Protection limit
What the £120,000 figure really covers
Per depositor, per banking licence
The limit applies to your total eligible balance held with the licensed bank — not per account. Several accounts under the same licence share one limit.
It went up from £85,000
The FSCS deposit limit was raised to £120,000. Older articles quoting £85,000 are simply out of date.
Above the limit, spread it
If you routinely hold more than the protected amount, keep the excess with a separate banking licence rather than another account at the same one.
It covers failure, not fraud losses
FSCS steps in if the bank fails. Losses from scams and authorised push payments are handled under separate reimbursement rules, which is why the security habits below matter.
Security
The controls you should actually switch on
Strong customer authentication
Card payments online and app logins are protected by two-factor checks. Never approve a prompt you did not trigger yourself.
Freeze the card instantly
A lost card can be frozen in the app in seconds and unfrozen just as fast, which is safer than cancelling and waiting for a replacement.
Per-card spending limits
Team expense cards can be capped, restricted and monitored, so one compromised card is not a route into the whole balance.
Separate admin from spending
Give team members card access without full account access. Only the people who need to move money should be able to.
Check the payee name
Confirmation of Payee flags when an account name does not match. If it warns you, stop and verify by phone using a number you already had.
Keep the app updated
Security fixes ship with app updates. An out-of-date app is the easiest weak point in an otherwise sound setup.
If something goes wrong
Your escalation route
Raise it in the app first
Start with in-app support so there is a written record with timestamps. Note the date you first complained — the clock starts there.
Eight weeks is the deadline
A regulated firm has up to eight weeks to give you a final response to a complaint.
Then the Financial Ombudsman Service
If you are unhappy with the final response, or eight weeks pass without one, you can take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service free of charge.
Report fraud immediately
For suspected fraud, freeze the card and contact support the same day. Delay is the single biggest factor in whether funds can be recovered.
Questions
Is Tide safe? FAQ
Is Tide FSCS protected?
Yes. Tide Business Current Accounts are Powered by ClearBank and eligible deposits are protected by the FSCS up to £120,000 per eligible depositor.
Is Tide a real bank?
Tide is a financial platform rather than a bank in its own name. The banking itself is provided by ClearBank Limited, which holds the UK banking licence.
Who regulates Tide?
Tide is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for the services it provides, and ClearBank, which holds your deposits, is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the FCA and PRA.
What happens to my money if Tide fails?
Your balance is held at ClearBank rather than by Tide, so it is not part of Tide's own funds. Eligible deposits remain FSCS protected up to £120,000.
Is Tide safe for a limited company?
Yes, and over two million businesses use it. The practical checks are the same as any account: keep balances within the protection limit, use the card controls and turn on every security feature in the app.
Is it safe to open Tide through a referral link?
Yes, as long as the link takes you to tide.co. The referral simply tags your application so the NEW200 reward is applied; you enter all your details on Tide's own site.
Happy with the protection? Claim the £200
Use referral code NEW200 during sign-up, or open through the link and it is applied automatically.
Claim your £200 nowRead next: Tide fees in full or Tide vs Starling and Monzo.