1. Licensed bank only
Every bank in the ranking holds a published licence in its home jurisdiction — full credit institution, EMI, payment institution, or the regional equivalent (SOFIPO, SCD, instituição de pagamento). The regulator and the deposit-protection (or safeguarding) scheme are named on each review. Brands without a verifiable licence don't make the list.
2. Quarterly re-audit
The ranking is rebuilt every quarter against current fee schedules, regulatory filings, and dated app-testing notes — not refreshed in place. Last quarter's number one is not guaranteed today's.
3. No affiliate weighting
The scoring algorithm cannot see whether a brand pays a commission. Affiliate links are labelled visibly on every CTA per FTC 16 CFR Part 255, but commission status never moves a brand's position in the ranking.
4. Hands-on testing
Accounts are opened, funded, transferred from, and used to call support — with the dated steps recorded on every brand we feature. Reviews missing that first-party evidence are flagged in the methodology.