What is the Deposit Guarantee?
At the height of the recent GFC, the federal government introduced the Australian Government Guarantee Scheme for Large Deposits and Wholesale Funding (the Guarantee Scheme). The objective of the scheme was to promote financial stability with in Australia and to ensure that financial institutions could continue to access funding. The emergency component of the scheme has now ceased however one component of the scheme that continues to be applied is the Financial Claims Scheme; a guarantee on bank deposits of up to $250,000 per customer and per institution.
What deposits are covered?
The financial claims scheme applies to a wide range of deposits, including:
| savings accounts | cash management accounts |
|---|---|
| call accounts | farm management deposits |
| term deposits | pensioner deeming accounts |
| current accounts | mortgage offset accounts |
| cheque accounts | deposit accounts |
| debit card accounts | trustee accounts |
| transaction accounts | retirement savings accounts |
| personal basic account | first home saver deposit accounts |
It applies to deposits held with approved deposit institutions incorporated in Australia, which includes Australian banks, building societies and credit unions as well as foreign subsidiary banks. It does not, however, apply to deposits sitting in branches of Australian banks overseas.
Check out Canstar’s term deposits calculator.
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