In this article, you'll learn how money moves in and out of your Payhawk account and how your funds are protected.
Payhawk IBAN
An IBAN (International Bank Account Number) is a standardized identifier for a bank account, used to send and receive payments accurately across borders.
When you open a Payhawk account, you get a dedicated IBAN - your own unique account number tied to your company.
You can use this IBAN to:
Load funds into your Payhawk account by sending a transfer from your corporate bank account.
Receive payments directly into your Payhawk balance.
When funding your account, make sure the IBAN and BIC details you provide exactly match what's shown in the Funds app of your Payhawk Web Portal to avoid failed or delayed transactions.
Supported payment schemes
A payment scheme is the underlying infrastructure that processes a transfer. It determines how fast a payment arrives and which currencies are supported.
Payhawk uses local and regional payment schemes wherever possible to ensure transfers are fast and cost-effective.
To find an overview of the schemes Payhawk supports for outgoing bank transfers, see the article about supported payment schemes.
Safeguarding funds
Payhawk partners with electronic money institutions (EMIs) to provide services. This means that your funds are protected through a process called safeguarding rather than a deposit guarantee scheme. The specific EMI Payhawk works with, such as PFSUAB for the EEA or PFSL for the UK, depends on your region.
Safeguarding is a regulatory requirement that ensures your money is held separately from Payhawk's own operational funds, in a dedicated account at a regulated bank (the safeguarding bank).
This separation means that:
Your funds are ring-fenced and cannot be used by Payhawk for its own purposes.
In the unlikely event that Payhawk faced financial difficulties, your balance will remain protected and identifiable as belonging to you.
This arrangement is overseen by financial regulators and is a standard practice for all licensed e-money institutions operating in the EU and UK.
The safeguarding banks that Payhawk currently uses to hold your funds are J.P.Morgan (JPM) located in Luxembourg (for EU customers) and in the UK (for UK customers), LHV Bank (LHV EE) located in Estonia, and ClearBank located in the UK.