Vivid Money Standard
A plan byVivid Money · Visa
Vivid Money is a Luxembourg electronic money institution (Vivid Money S.A., supervised by the CSSF) offering a personal account with an Italian IBAN, a Visa debit card, up to 4% category cashback, interest on cash and in-app investing. It is not a bank: funds are not covered by a deposit guarantee scheme but are held separately (safeguarding) at partner banks or invested in low-risk money-market funds through a dedicated foundation.
Standard
- Price
- Free
- FX markup
- 0%
- Cashback
- 4%
- Cashback currency
- Euro
- Cashback cap
- €20
- Required staking
- Nessuno
- ATM fee
- 0%
What's included
- Italian IBAN
- Visa debit card
- Up to 4% cashback (max €20/month)
- Interest up to 0.1% (3% promo for the first 2 months)
Data & conditions
| Account fee | Free |
|---|---|
| IBAN | dedicato · IT · IT |
| Deposit guarantee | None (e-money account) |
| Multi-currency | No (single currency) |
| Outbound transfers to third-party IBANs | Yes |
| Utility direct billing | Yes |
| SEPA direct debit (SDD) | Yes |
| On-chain crypto withdrawal | No |
| SEPA transfer | Free |
| Card included | Carta Visa di debito inclusa (virtuale e fisica) |
| Interest on balance | 2% |
| Network | Visa |
| ATM withdrawal | Free |
| Fund custody | Custodial (platform holds funds) |
| KYC | Full |
| Supported countries | EEA |
| Regulator | CSSF |
| Segment | B2C |
| Funding / solidity | Vivid Money S.A. · Luxembourg electronic money institution (CSSF) · personal account with Italian IBAN |
| MiCA / License status | Istituto di moneta elettronica (CSSF) Luxembourg EMI (CSSF) |
Strengths
- Italian IBAN with a Visa debit card and up to 4% category cashback
- Interest on cash and investing built into the app
- Standard plan free of charge for 'active' customers
- No notable sovereignty advantage documented.
Weaknesses
- Not a bank: no deposit guarantee, only EMI safeguarding
- Standard is free only if you are 'active' (at least one card transaction or €1,000 balance in the month), otherwise €3.90/month
- Commercial focus increasingly on business; the personal offering changes frequently
- Custodial: the platform holds your funds and can freeze or lose them.
- Full KYC required: verified identity, zero pseudonymity.
- Subject to regulation (Luxembourg EMI (CSSF)): reporting to authorities and freezes on order.
Verdict
Rating 3.4 (tier C): Vivid is a well-built product — Italian IBAN, Visa card, up to 4% cashback and interest — but it remains an electronic money institution, not a bank. That distinction matters for protection: your money is not covered by a deposit guarantee up to €100,000, only by the safeguarding mechanism (segregated accounts / money-market funds). Add the 'free only if active' model (otherwise €3.90/month) and a commercial focus shifting toward business. Useful as a secondary account for cashback and cash, less suited to those seeking the protection of a supervised bank.
Vivid is fully custodial and full-KYC: the e-money is issued and held by a Luxembourg institution supervised by the CSSF, which can freeze or close the account and reports transactions to the authorities. No self-custody, no censorship resistance: on the sovereignty axis it is a centralised account like any other.
Promp's editorial rating based on real fees and net annual cost. Promp reviews third-party products independently.
"Sovereignty" rating: score computed on privacy/anonymity (30%), fund control (20%), censorship resistance (20%), trustless/auditability (20%) and costs (10%). Same data, different weights.
FAQ
Is money on Vivid guaranteed up to €100,000 like at a bank?
No. Vivid Money S.A. is an electronic money institution, not a bank: funds are not covered by a deposit guarantee scheme. They are protected through safeguarding — held in segregated accounts at banks or invested in low-risk money-market funds via the Stichting Vivid Money foundation — but they do not enjoy the automatic up-to-€100,000 protection typical of bank accounts.
Does Vivid offer an Italian IBAN?
Yes: personal customers can choose an Italian IBAN (as well as a German or Spanish one), useful for payments and incoming transfers in Italy.
Sources
- Official service page Plans & pricing · Cashback · Interesse · Regulator Data verified on Jul 12, 2026
- help.vivid.money Iban italiano Data verified on Jul 12, 2026
- support.vivid.money Deposit guarantee · Safeguarding Data verified on Jul 12, 2026