bunq is another of the newer digital banks that are available in Ireland. (pronounced “bunk”.)
Bunq is a fully licenced EU bank – and any money held with them is protected by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme of the Dutch National Bank (DNB) up to €100,000
We have reviewed and compared similar digital banking apps such as
Bunq was first available in Ireland as just a payment card – but they gradually upgraded their service to a fully featured bank account. One added advantage of Bunq for Irish customers is that it is possible to get an Irish IBAN.
Interest on Savings at Bunq
Bunq has an instant access savings account which is currently paying 3.36% Interest . (Two withdrawals a month are allowed.).
Funds are covered (up to €100,000) by the Dutch banking guarantee.
Find Out More about Bunq Savings
There are 4 different Account Options with bunq
- Easy Savings (Free) Pays interest.
- Easy Bank (€3.99 a month) (Irish IBAN allowed)
- Easy Bank Pro (€9.99 a month) (Irish IBAN allowed)
- Easy Bank Pro XL €18.99 a month) (We won’t bother looking at this one for now).
Summary of the Bunq Easy Savings Account
- The savings account is just that – you can pay money into it via SEPA deposit/transfers.
- Deposits are automatically covered by the Dutch Deposit Guarantee Scheme (DGS). (upto €100,000)
- You can’t use the account to make payments in shops etc , it doesn’t come with a card..
- A bunq savings account can be opened in minutes on your smartphone (verification of Id required). There is no minimum amount required.
- Interest is paid weekly , no tax is deducted – you will have to declare any interest to Revenue yourself.
- A maximum of 2 withdrawals a month are allowed.
Open a Bunq Easy Savings Account Here.
Summary of The bunq Easy Bank Account
You get the following with a Bunq Easy Bank Account: (€3.99 monthly)
- Option to have an Irish IBAN for Irish residents.
- 1 Free physical Card (Mastercard Credit ** or Maestro Debit,)
- Apple/Google Pay ,
- 5x ATM withdrawals a month for €0.99 each Then ATM withdrawals are €2.99 each after you exceed the above’s limit .
- annual interest
- Low cost foreign currency transfers via Wise.
- Direct Debits
- Split receipts
- Joint account (two Bunq account holders can have a joint sub-account with its own IBAN)
- ** The bunq card , is a prepaid Mastercard credit card. But ,unlike a real credit card,- you can’t spend more than your balance. Every payment will be immediately deducted from your balance. But the card will be accepted like a credit card for things such as car hire and hotel reservations,
The bunq account can be accessed on smartphone or desktop.
You can get your Irish IBAN by clicking on the Event tab on your Home screen.
Sign Up Here for Bunq Easy Bank
Spending Money with bunq Easy Bank
The bunq Easy Bank card uses the Mastercard Exchange Rate with a 2% foreign exchange fee.
The bunq easy bank card has a massive €50,000 maximum daily spending limit – as long as you have enough in your account of course! The default limit is €1000 per day, but this can be altered at any time in the bunq app.
The bunq Easy Bank card can be used with Apple Pay and Google Pay by customers in Ireland .
ATM withdrawals
The first 5 ATM cash withdrawal cost €0.99c each, After that it’s €2.99 each . There is a €500 daily withdrawal limit.
For non Euro ATM withdrawals bunq uses the Mastercard Exchange Rate plus a 2% fee.
– see a comparison with other banks here.
Topping up the Easy Bank Card
- Bank Transfer top ups are free.
- Top-ups by debit or credit card will incur a 0.5% fee
Top up daily limits: There is no limit on bank transfer top-ups , however, there is a €2000 daily top up limit if using a debit card .
Bunq Easy Bank Pro Account
The more expensive Bunq Easy Bank Pro account costs €9.99 a month .
What are the Extra Features of the Bunq Bank Pro Account?
- Receive and send 15 currencies: Australian Dollar, British Pound Sterling, Bulgarian Lev, Canadian Dollar, Czech Koruna, Danish Krone, Polish Zlotych, Romanian Leu, South African Rand, Swedish Krona, Swiss franc, Turkish Lira, United Arab Emirates Dirham, US Dollar
- 25 sub accounts allowed – each with its own IBAN.
- ATM withdrawals: six free withdrawals per month, followed by five at 99c and €2.99 thereafter.
- The foreign conversion fee is zero – but there is a 0.5% “network fee”
- 3 Free cards
Under 18’s can apply for a bunq account – they just need permission from a parent or guardian who is also a bunq customer
Bunq is a fully licenced EU bank – and any money held in Euros with them is protected by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme of the Dutch National Bank (DNB) up to €100,000 .(Any funds in other currencies than the euro are not protected by the Deposit Guarantee Scheme.)
Alternatives to bunq
Revolut – Read more about Revolut plans and pricing here
Revolut is a smartphone banking app that now has over 20 million customers.
Customers can exchange money with no hidden fees. They even allow you to buy crypto and shares
You can Join Revolut Here
bunq Easy bank account compared to Revolut Plus
Wise
Wise (previously Transferwise) . They can provide you with a multi-currency international Account with a debit card.
Wise is not a licenced bank – but their international money account provides you with a valid UK account number and sort code that can be used in the same way as a normal UK bank account.
You also get accounts in Euro , US Dollars , Australian Dollars and New Zealand Dollars. You can link a Wise account to their debit card for spending in any currency.
Wise allows you to get exchange rates that are pretty close to the interbank rates. They charge a flat rate conversion fee – which may vary depending on the currencies involved. For example, when converting €500 to Sterling in Feb 2021 the charge was 0.41%. €2.05 .
In the EU , Wise is licensed and regulated by the National Bank of Belgium. They are authorised in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”).
You can find out more and sign up for a Wise account here.