Monevium Ltd Enters Special Administration: What Customers Must Do Before 13 August 2026

What Monevium did and who used it

Monevium Ltd, formerly known as Advanced Wallet Solutions Limited, was incorporated in London and authorised by the FCA under the Payment Services Regulations to provide payment services. Its core products included EUR-denominated IBAN accounts that allowed businesses and individuals to send and receive payments in euros, SEPA credit transfers within the Single Euro Payments Area covering most of Europe, and domestic and international money transfer services.

The firm operated in a segment of the market that serves businesses with cross-border payment needs, freelancers and contractors working with European clients, and individuals seeking low-cost international money transfer facilities. EUR IBAN accounts provided by firms like Monevium are used for receiving euro payments from European employers, clients and counterparties without the need for a traditional bank account with a European institution.

Monevium was distinct from the major retail electronic money institutions in the UK market. It occupied a niche serving customers who needed euro payment infrastructure rather than a general-purpose current account substitute. This meant its customer base, while not numerically large, included businesses and individuals for whom disruption to payment services could have material operational consequences.

The warning signs: two years of FCA restrictions

Monevium did not collapse without warning. The firm agreed to a voluntary undertaking with the FCA on 28 February 2024, more than two years before the formal administration. Under that undertaking, Monevium agreed to restrict the activities it could carry out. The nature of the restrictions is recorded on the FCA's Financial Services Register and was publicly visible throughout the period, though the specific concerns that prompted the restrictions have not been publicly disclosed by either the FCA or the firm.

The existence of voluntary activity restrictions for more than two years before the administration points to a prolonged period of difficulty. Payment services firms are typically restricted by the FCA when the regulator has concerns about their financial resources, their systems and controls, or their compliance with safeguarding obligations. Safeguarding refers to the requirement for payment institutions to hold customer funds in segregated accounts that are ring-fenced from the firm's own assets, so that if the firm fails, those funds are available for return to customers rather than to general creditors.

No public explanation for the specific trigger that converted the restricted operation into a formal administration on 18 June 2026 has been provided. The administrators took over from that date, and Monevium's own management ceased to control the firm's affairs from that point.

What happens to customer funds

Payment services firms and electronic money institutions regulated by the FCA are required under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 and the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 to safeguard customer funds. Safeguarding means holding customer money in designated accounts at an authorised credit institution, separate from the firm's own operating funds. This segregation is the critical protection in cases of firm failure: it means that money customers have sent to or received through the firm is not treated as a company asset available to pay general creditors.

The special administration regime introduced by the Payment and Electronic Money Institution Insolvency Regulations 2021 was specifically designed for exactly this type of firm failure. Its primary objective, distinct from ordinary insolvency proceedings, is the return of customer funds as soon as reasonably practicable. The joint special administrators are responsible for identifying all segregated customer funds, reconciling the records, and distributing those funds back to customers.

S&W Partners has set 13 August 2026 as the soft bar date for customer claims. After this date, the administrators intend to apply to court for approval of a distribution plan. Customers who submit claims before 13 August 2026 are expected to be included in the initial distribution. Customers who miss this date may face delays or complications in recovering their funds and should contact the administrators as soon as possible.

How to make a claim as a Monevium customer

Customers who hold funds at Monevium, whether in a EUR IBAN account or held pending a payment transfer, should take the following steps. The first step is to complete the customer claim form available on the S&W Partners Monevium administration page at swgroup.com. The form asks for details of the funds held, the nature of the account, and contact information.

The completed form should be emailed to monevium@swgroup.com before 13 August 2026. This is described by the administrators as a soft bar date, meaning that it is the deadline for inclusion in the initial distribution process rather than a hard legal cutoff after which claims cannot be made. However, submitting before 13 August 2026 is strongly advisable to ensure inclusion in the first distribution and to avoid administrative delays.

Customers who have questions about the process or have not received a response from the administrators can also contact the FCA Consumer Helpline on 0800 111 6768 for general information about the administration process and their rights as customers of a firm in special administration. The FCA has confirmed that it will continue to engage with the administrators throughout the process to seek the best outcome for customers.

Fraud warning: beware impersonators

Firm failures and administration processes are frequently exploited by fraudsters who contact customers of the failed firm, impersonating the administrators, the FCA, or the firm itself. These fraudsters may claim to be processing refunds, request bank account details for the purpose of returning funds, or ask customers to pay a fee to release their money.

Neither S&W Partners nor the FCA will contact customers by cold call requesting payment to release funds. Any contact purportedly from Monevium, S&W Partners or the FCA should be treated with caution. If you receive such a contact, end the call and contact S&W Partners or the FCA directly using contact details obtained from their official websites, not from contact details provided by the caller.

The FCA has published a specific warning about fraud targeting Monevium customers on its consumer news page. Any contact that asks for payment of a fee, requests unusual personal or financial information, or offers to expedite the refund process in exchange for money should be treated as a likely fraud attempt and reported to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.

Regulatory context: a pattern of firm failures in 2026

Monevium is one of three FCA-authorised firms that entered administration or special administration within a two-week period in June 2026. Euro Exchange Securities UK Limited was placed into special administration on 4 June 2026 following an FCA requirement that it cease regulated activities. Amplifi Capital (U.K.) Limited entered ordinary administration on 11 June 2026. The FCA published consumer news notices on all three cases.

The clustering of firm failures within this period does not necessarily indicate a systemic issue in the payment services sector. Payment institutions and electronic money institutions operate in a competitive and technically demanding regulatory environment, and the FCA's supervision of the sector has intensified in recent years following a series of high-profile failures. The voluntary restriction regime, which Monevium entered in February 2024, is one of the tools the FCA uses to manage firms it has concerns about before the situation reaches administration.

For customers of any FCA-authorised payment services firm, the Monevium case is a reminder of the importance of not holding large balances at a single payment institution for extended periods, particularly where those funds are operational cash for a business. Payment institutions do not benefit from FSCS deposit protection, which covers bank deposits up to £85,000. While the safeguarding regime provides significant protection, it is not identical to FSCS coverage and the process of recovering funds through special administration takes time.

The special administration regime: how it differs from ordinary insolvency

The special administration regime introduced by the Payment and Electronic Money Institution Insolvency Regulations 2021 is distinct from ordinary company administration or liquidation in several important ways that directly affect how Monevium customers should expect the process to unfold.

In an ordinary administration or liquidation, the administrator's primary duty is to achieve the best outcome for creditors as a whole, which may involve selling assets, collecting debts and distributing proceeds. Customer funds held by a failed retailer or service business would typically rank alongside other unsecured creditors and might be recovered only partially, if at all, after secured creditors and preferential creditors have been paid.

The special administration regime for payment institutions operates differently. Its primary objective, established by the 2021 Regulations, is to return client funds as soon as reasonably practicable. Customer funds that were held in compliant segregated safeguarding accounts are treated as a distinct pool of assets that belongs to customers, not to the company. These funds are not available to pay the firm's general creditors, including its suppliers, employees or other unsecured creditors. The administrators are required to prioritise getting this money back to customers above other insolvency objectives.

The secondary objectives of the special administration regime are ensuring timely engagement with payment system operators and the FCA, and ensuring orderly wind-down of the firm's regulated activities. These objectives reflect the fact that payment services firms are embedded in payment infrastructure and their disorderly failure could have knock-on effects for other parties in the payments chain.

What unsecured creditors of Monevium should know

Parties who are owed money by Monevium in a capacity other than as customers, such as suppliers with unpaid invoices or counterparties with contractual claims, are treated as unsecured creditors of the company rather than as customers with a claim on segregated funds. The administrators have indicated that they do not anticipate there will be any company realisations available for distribution to unsecured creditors, meaning suppliers and other unsecured creditors are unlikely to recover money owed to them.

This distinction between customer claims and creditor claims is important for businesses that had both a payment services relationship with Monevium and a separate contractual or commercial relationship. The customer relationship claim, covering money held in a Monevium payment account, is treated as a priority claim against segregated funds. A separate commercial claim, such as an unpaid invoice for services provided to Monevium, would be an unsecured creditor claim with a much lower prospect of recovery.

Frequently asked questions

Are my funds safe and will I get them back?

Monevium was required under FCA rules to hold customer funds in segregated accounts separate from company assets. The administrators are working to identify and return these funds. Submit your claim before 13 August 2026 to be included in the initial distribution plan.

Do I need to do anything if I have a small balance?

Yes. All customers with funds at Monevium should submit a claim regardless of the amount. Complete the customer claim form and email it to monevium@swgroup.com before 13 August 2026.

Is my money covered by the FSCS?

No. Payment services firms are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which protects bank deposits up to £85,000. Customer funds are protected instead by the safeguarding requirements under the Payment Services Regulations 2017, which require the funds to be held in segregated accounts.

Can I still use my Monevium account?

Monevium has been in a restricted operating regime since February 2024. The special administration means the administrators now manage the firm. Contact S&W Partners for any operational questions about existing transactions.

What if I was in the middle of a payment transfer when the administration began?

Include details of any pending or in-progress transfers in your customer claim form. The administrators will need to reconcile these against the firm's records. Payments in transit are one of the more complex aspects of payment institution administrations and the administrators are required to work with payment system operators to resolve them.