Should I keep money in more than one country?

The idea is simple. If all your money sits in one country, one event there can block it. That event could be a bank failure, a deposit freeze or new capital controls.

Cyprus in 2013 shows the risk. Large deposits were bailed in. Individuals could withdraw only 300 euros per day per bank, according to a 2020 IMF Independent Evaluation Office paper.

Deposit protection differs by country. The FDIC insures US deposits to at least $250,000 per depositor, per ownership category, at each insured bank. The International Association of Deposit Insurers lists 125 jurisdictions with deposit insurance systems, each with its own rules.

There are real costs. A US person whose foreign accounts total more than $10,000 at any time in a year must file an FBAR with FinCEN. Other countries have their own reporting rules, and transfers carry fees.

One approach is to match money to its job. Keep spending money where you live, and long-term savings where the rules and currency are most predictable for you. This is educational research, not financial advice.