What's the difference between my Cash Balance and my USD Account?
These are two different things that work together, and it's easy to mix them up.
Cash Balance is your main wallet inside Onboard. It holds your funds in USD. Everything you receive - whether it's stablecoins, Naira, euros, or dollars - lands here as USD. You use it to fund cards, send money, and move funds around the app.
Every verified Onboard user has a Cash Balance. It's available immediately.
USD Account (also called your USD Named Account) is a US bank account in your name that gives you routing and account numbers. It's how you receive USD from employers, clients, or platforms via ACH or Fedwire — like a regular bank account.
Not everyone has one. It requires additional verification and isn't available in all countries.
How they connect: When someone sends USD to your USD Account, those funds settle into your Cash Balance. The USD Account is the entry point — the Cash Balance is where the money lives.
Quick comparison:
| Cash Balance | USD Account |
|---|---|---|
What it is | Your USD wallet | A US bank account in your name |
Available to | All verified users | Requires additional verification |
Used for | Holding, spending, sending, funding cards | Receiving USD from external senders |
Receives from | Stablecoins, NGN, USD, EUR, internal transfers | ACH and FedWire only |
Has account/routing numbers | No | Yes |
Supports SWIFT | N/A | Not yet |
Think of it this way: The USD Account is like having a mailbox for receiving dollars. The Cash Balance is the room where you keep and use them.
Updated on: 20/02/2026
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