Now Money vs ila Bank.
Now Money (N60/100) and ila Bank (i50/100), scored on the same six pillars and compared row-by-row. Every cell is sourced from licence registers and live pricing pages, not opinion. Now Money leads ila Bank 3-1.
| i ila Bank №74 · ila Bank is the digital retail brand of Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait 50 /100 | N Now Money №52 · CBUAE 60 /100 | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | ||
| Composite score Out of 100 | 51 /100 | 60 /100 |
| Fees | ||
| Monthly fee Cheapest paid tier (€0 if free) | €0 Free tier | €0 Free tier |
| FX markup Debit card abroad | 1.50% | Interbank |
| Free FX / month EUR equivalent | €0 | €0 |
| Free ATM Before fee kicks in | — | — |
| Protection | ||
| Banking licence Tier | Payment inst. | E-money inst. CBUAE |
| Deposit guarantee Per depositor | Safeguarded BH.DCS | Safeguarded AE.DPS |
| Reach | ||
| Markets served Licensed jurisdictions | 1 country | 1 country |
| Crypto Coins available | No | No |
| Stocks & ETFs Self-directed | No | No |
| UX | ||
| Trustpilot Customer score | — | — |
| App store iOS + Android avg | 4.2 ★ iOS 4.3 · And 4.1 | 4.0 ★ iOS 4.0 · And 3.9 |
| Read review → | Read review → | |
Pick ila Bank if…
Digital retail brand of Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK B.S.C., Bahrain Bourse: BBK) — one of the GCC's oldest commercial banks (founded 1971). Launched November 2019 as Bahrain's first fully-digital retail bank. CBB Conventional Retail Bank licence sits at the BBK parent; ila is a brand inside that charter, not a separately licensed entity. Bahrain DPS cover BHD 20,000 per depositor flows via the parent licence under CBB Rulebook Volume 6. Conventional banking; for Sharia products from the same group, see KFH Bahrain (separately licensed Islamic bank).
Pick Now Money if…
Migrant-worker-focused EMI in the UAE. Built-in remittance to South Asia at competitive FX. CBUAE-supervised EMI; not a bank — funds are safeguarded, not deposit-insured. Fills the underbanked segment that Liv/Wio/Mashreq Neo don't directly serve.
- Best for fees Now Money won 1 of 4
- Best for protection Now Money won 1 of 2
- Best for reach Tied
- Best for ux ila Bank won 1 of 2
Now Money vs ila Bank — FAQ
Quick answers to the four questions the search-bar asks most about a head-to-head.
Is ila Bank better than Now Money?
Under our v3 methodology, Now Money leads ila Bank 3–1 across 12 dimensions. Composite scores: ila Bank 50/100 vs Now Money 60/100. Now Money is stronger overall, but the right pick depends on which row matters most to you — fees, protection, reach, or app quality.
Is ila Bank or Now Money cheaper?
Monthly fee — ila Bank: €0; Now Money: €0. Card FX markup — ila Bank: 1.50%; Now Money: Interbank. Now Money wins more fee rows (1 of 4). See the Fees section of the matrix above for ATM caps and the rest.
Which is safer for deposits, ila Bank or Now Money?
ila Bank holds a Payment inst. licence under ila Bank is the digital retail brand of Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK B.S.C.) — CBB Conventional Retail Bank licence held at the BBK parent. CBB Rulebook Volume 6 Deposit Protection Scheme cover up to BHD 20,000 per depositor per institution; ila and BBK aggregate against one ceiling because they are the same legal entity. Verify the current DPS ceiling on cbb.gov.bh.; deposit guarantee per depositor: Safeguarded. Now Money holds a E-money inst. licence under CBUAE; deposit guarantee per depositor: Safeguarded. Now Money is the stronger pick on regulatory protection.
Where can I use ila Bank and Now Money?
ila Bank operates in 1 country; Now Money operates in 1 country. Check each provider's signup page for the live country list — eligibility depends on residency, not just the licence footprint.
Want a 3- or 4-way comparison?
The dynamic compare picker handles up to four banks. Add this pair plus one or two more and we'll resolve every row.