Are my funds with Carry safe? How are my accounts insured and protected?
At Carry, we take the safety and security of your assets very seriously. That's why we partner only with reputable, well-established custodians to hold your funds. Carry does not custody or hold any funds. The specific safeguards and protections depend on the type of custodian:
Bank Custodians: (Grasshopper Bank, N.A.)
Current Carry accounts custodied with Bank Custodians:
Solo401k Alternative Investing
When your funds are custodied at our partner bank Grasshopper Bank, N.A., they are covered by FDIC insurance. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is an independent federal agency that protects you against the loss of your insured deposits if an FDIC-insured bank or savings association fails. FDIC insurance is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Carry is a technology company, not a bank or member FDIC.
The standard FDIC insurance amount is $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, for each account ownership category. All of your deposits at the same insured bank that are in the same ownership category are added together and the total is insured up to the $250,000 limit.
Important Notice: FDIC coverage only applies to funds that are actively custodied with our custodian. This means, once you make an alternative investment, your funds will be transferred out of your account to the investment - at which point the transferred funds will no longer be with Carry or insured.
Broker-Dealer Custodians (DriveWealth, LLC)
Current Carry accounts custodied with Broker-Dealer Custodians:
Solo401k Stocks & ETFs
IRA Stocks & ETFs
Brokerage Accounts
Cash
Funds held at brokerage custodians like DriveWealth, LLC are protected by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). SIPC protects against the loss of cash and securities - such as stocks and bonds - held by a customer at a financially-troubled SIPC-member brokerage firm. SIPC protection is limited to $500,000, which includes a $250,000 limit for cash.
It's important to note that SIPC does not protect against the decline in value of your securities. SIPC only protect the custody function performed by the broker-dealer - they work to restore to customers their securities and cash that are in their accounts when the brokerage firm liquidation begins.
For uninvested cash in your brokerage account, DriveWealth offers a "Bank Sweep" program. Under this program, your uninvested cash is automatically "swept" into FDIC-insured bank deposit accounts at one or more program banks. This provides the safety of FDIC insurance for your cash while still providing the convenience of keeping it readily available in your brokerage account.
We carefully vet and continuously monitor the financial stability of all our custodial partners. However, no investment is without risk. That's why we believe in transparency so you can make informed decisions about your finances. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any other questions!
Trust Company Custodians (American Estate & Trust)
Current Carry accounts custodied with Trust Companies:
IRA Alternative Investing
IRA Crypto Investing
When your funds are held at our trust company partner, American Estate & Trust (AET), they are not FDIC insured as AET is not a bank. However, AET is regulated by the Nevada Financial Institutions Division and is subject to rigorous capital requirements, regulatory oversight and periodic examinations. Your assets are held separate from AET's corporate assets and are not used in the conduct of AET's business.
AET accounts are also protected by their errors and omissions insurance policy which covers potential losses resulting from negligence, errors, or other wrongful acts committed by AET employees in the course of their work. This insurance provides an extra layer of protection for your assets. It's important to note that none of these insurances protect against the decline or complete loss of value of your securities, or any fraud or mismanagement associated with your alternative investments. All investing involves risk, especially investing in alternative assets.
For more information about FDIC or SIPC protection, visit www.sipc.org or www.fdic.gov