diff --git a/swh/vault/api/server.py b/swh/vault/api/server.py
--- a/swh/vault/api/server.py
+++ b/swh/vault/api/server.py
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@
         raise ValueError("missing 'vault' configuration")
 
     vcfg = cfg["vault"]
-    if vcfg["cls"] != "local":
+    if vcfg["cls"] not in ("local", "postgresql"):
         raise EnvironmentError(
             "The vault backend can only be started with a 'local' configuration",
         )