Upgrade is offering a up to $200 deposit bonus via referral link when you open their standalone Premier Savings account and make a deposit of at least $15,000 in the first 30 days and leave it there for at least an additional 60 days. No credit check either time. FDIC insurance through Cross River Bank.

Note: This is a separate bonus from the ongoing $150 Upgrade Rewards Checking bonus, which had a direct deposit requirement. You could also add on a “Performance Savings” account onto a Rewards Checking account, while this offer is for a different “Premier Savings” account.

Per the fine print, you should be able to get this bonus as long as this is your first “Premier Savings” account. It doesn’t matter if you already got the Rewards Checking bonus (as I did). You just need to make sure you use a referral link with the promotion attached.

If you have never had a Premier Savings account through Upgrade (a “New Customer”), you can receive a Welcome Bonus (defined below) if you (1) use an Existing Customer’s unique referral link to open a new Premier Savings account, subject to account approval, by the Offer Period, (2) make a deposit within 30 days of opening the new account, and (3) after the initial 30-day period, maintain at all times during an additional 60 days the minimum account balance presented to you (a “Qualified Registration”).

The account opening process for my first Upgrade account was very quick and easy, literally under 5 minutes. I did not have to upload any extra documentation and I did not experience any hard credit checks. The account was open and ready the day after application. If you are an existing customer (as I was this time), it was even faster. All my details were pre-filled and so it just took a few clicks.

All of my previously-linked external bank account details were also available to make a transfer. Upgrade uses Finicity (owned by Mastercard) for linking external bank accounts.

Here are the highlights of the Premier Savings account:

• 5.07% APY as of 11/9/23 with $1,000 minimum balance required to earn interest.
• No direct deposit requirement (unlike the Performance Savings).
• No monthly fees.

Effective APY. If you deposit towards the end of the 30-day funding period, your technical minimal holding period is 60 days.

For the $15,000 and $30,000 deposit tiers, if you meet that deposit value exactly, this works out to an additional 2.00% annualized yield. If you assume the current 5.07% APY, that adds up to a total effective interest of roughly 7.07% APY annualized for 2 months.

For the $50,000 deposit tier, if you meet that deposit value exactly, this works out to an additional 2.40% annualized yield. If you assume the current 5.07% APY, that adds up to a total effective interest of roughly 7.47% APY annualized for 2 months. You can also take your time and view it as 6.67% APY over 3 months.

A straightforward deposit promotion with a smooth application and short hold period that doesn’t incur a hard credit check. Also stacks with another separate checking account promotion. This is my Upgrade Premier Savings $200 referral link. Thanks if you use it.

Another drop in my 2023 IRA challenge bucket.

BMO Alto is the online-only division of BMO Bank N.A. (member FDIC). You can only access BMO Alto products through its unique website, not any existing BMO login. As of 11/8/23, they are offering very competitive rates for CDs (certificates of deposit) which would be very suitable for a ladder:

• 5-year at 5.25% APY
• 4-year at 5.20% APY
• 3-year at 5.10% APY
• 2-year at 5.00% APY
• 1-year at 5.65% APY
• 6-month at 5.50% APY
• Liquid savings at 5.10% APY (variable).

Additional details:

• No minimum to open.
• No monthly maintenance fees.
• Online statements only.
• Unfortunately, they do not offer IRA CDs at this time.
• If your savings account has a zero balance for 90 consecutive days it will be automatically closed. You must also fund your CD within 10 calendar days or it will be automatically closed.

Early withdrawals. The early withdrawal penalty (EWP) for CD maturities of 1 year or more is 180 days of interest. For CD maturities of 11 months or less, the EWP is 90 days of interest. Note that they reserve the right to prohibit early withdrawals entirely:

We reserve the right to permit withdrawals of principal only upon maturity. If we permit you to make an early withdrawal of principal before maturity, you will pay an early withdrawal penalty. The penalty is calculated using the interest rate applicable to the CD at the time of early withdrawal. If the amount of the penalty exceeds the amount of your accrued and unpaid interest, then a reduction of principal would be required in order to pay the penalty.

I maintain a 5-year ladder of CD and/or Treasury bonds with a rung that matures each year, so I don’t really worry about early withdrawals for liquidity, only as an option in case rates go much higher quickly.

You may be able to get similar or better tax-equivalent yields if you are subject to state/local income taxes with US Treasury bonds (4.51% at 5-year on 11/8/23), but if you don’t have such taxes, these BMO Alto rates are some of the best available. These BMO Alto rates are also higher than the best brokered CDs available at the moment.

If interest rates change between your CD opening date and the funding date, you will receive the higher APY. No minimum balance and $0 minimum opening deposit required. You have 10 days from account opening to fund your CD. Early withdrawal penalties may apply. Funds may not be withdrawn for 15 days after initial funding.

CIBC Bank USA has brought back a $250/$500 deposit bonus for customers that are adding new money to their Agility online savings account (you can be a new or existing customer). The bonus is on top of the interest rate, currently a competitive 5.01% APY (as of 11/7/23). $1,000 minimum to open. No monthly maintenance fees. CIBC stands for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. Hat tip to DepositAccounts.

I think it’s best to simply quote their terms and conditions first:

In order to qualify for an account bonus, you must increase the current balance in your CIBC Bank USA (“CIBC”) Agility Savings account by depositing funds of $25,000 or more of New Money (defined below) from an external bank between 12:00 a.m. ET on November 1, 2023 and 11:59 p.m. ET on December 19, 2023 (the “Funding Period”). The New Money must remain in your account until 11:59 p.m. on March 18, 2024. This offer applies to both new and existing accounts. If you are funding by ACH transfer, keep in mind timeframes for applicable verification and for transfer origination which may take 1-3 business days before the funds are credited to your Agility Savings account. The funds must be credited during the Funding Period.

You must also enroll into online statements:

If you are not already enrolled in e-statements, you must enroll in Online Banking and change the Statements Delivery Method to “Online” during the Funding Period. You must continue online statement delivery through March 18, 2024.

The bonus amount is $250 for $25,000+ and $500 for $50,000+ in new money as follows:

The amount of your bonus will be determined as follows:

– $250 bonus – The New Money you deposited from an external bank during the Funding Period was between $25,000 and $49,999.99 (“Tier 1”), and you maintained at least $25,000 in New Money until 11:59 p.m. ET on March 18, 2024.
– $500 bonus – The New Money you deposited from an external bank during the Funding Period was $50,000 or more (“Tier 2”), and you maintained at least$50,000 in New Money deposited in the account until 11:59 p.m. ET on March 18, 2024.

Additional details:

If you fulfill the offer requirements outlined above, CIBC Bank USA will deposit the bonus into your CIBC Agility Savings account no later than May 17, 2024. In order to receive the bonus your account must be open and not overdrawn at the time of the bonus payout. Only one bonus allowed per primary account owner Tax ID.

New deposit bonus example. Here’s how it might work for a new customer:

• Open a new CIBC Agility Savings Account AND also make your $25,000 or $50,000 deposit of new money (from outside CIBC) arrives safely before December 19, 2023.
• Remember to sign up for online eStatements as soon as you open your account.
• Earn $250 when you deposit at least $25,000 and keep the money in your account at least past March 18, 2024. (Roughly 3 months or 90 days minimum, probably a little more to be safe.)
• Earn $500 when you deposit at least $50,000 and keep the money in your account at least past March 18, 2024. (Roughly 3 months or 90 days minimum, probably a little more to be safe.)
• You may withdraw after 3/19 (although 5% APY isn’t awful), but keep the account open with a few dollars and with online statements active. You should receive the bonus payment no later than May 17, 2024 (another 2 months).

Effective APY. If you meet the tier values exactly, this works out to a 1% bonus on $25,000/$50,000 over a minimum 90 day hold time. This works out to 4% annualized, plus the 5.01% APY interest (variable), for a total effective interest of roughly 9% APY annualized for 3 months. This is a little optimistic as you will probably add a few days of holding time on either end. If you simply held it there for 4 months, that would still be an effective 8% APY for 4 months.

Capital One has brought back a deposit promotion worth up to $1,500 for new 360 Performance Savings accountholders. It’s a good bonus, but only for “new” customers and those that are willing to keep an eye on things. Here’s their definition of “new”:

If you have or had an open 360 Performance Savings, 360 Savings, 360 Money Market, Savings Now or Confidence Savings account as a primary or secondary account holder with Capital One on or after January 1, 2021, you will be ineligible for the bonus. If your account is in default, closed or suspended, or otherwise not in good standing, you will not receive the bonus.

Note: Some readers have reported in the past that they were not able to apply the promo code even as valid new customers, and Capital One responded that this was a targeted promotion even though there is no such language on the offer page nor in the terms and conditions. After applying, I would contact them and make sure that the promo code “FALL23” was accepted before making a large deposit for this promo.

Alright, onto the details:

• Open a new 360 Performance Savings account with promo code FALL23 by 12/6/2023.
• Deposit $20,000+ of external funds during the 15-day Initial Funding Period after opening your account.
• Hold the deposit(s) in your account for an additional 90 days after the 15-day Initial Funding Period ends.
• $20,000+ deposited = $300 bonus.
• $50,000+ deposited = $750 bonus.
• $100,000+ deposited = $1,500 bonus.
• See the bonus in your new account within 60 days after holding.
• You’ll also earn their normal interest rate (currently 4.30% APY as of 11/5/23). No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements.

Note that the 90-day “maintain balance” period is after and in addition to the end of the 15-day “initial funding period”. So if you are counting from the opening day, that is a total of 105 days after opening. This is important as other readers have gotten denied for the bonus when withdrawing after 91-100 days. You may wish to chat with Capital One to confirm the exact date.

As long as you hit the tiers exactly, you are getting 1.5% of your deposit with technically a minimum holding period of 90 days, but you’ll probably want to send it in a little early and take it out a little late to be safely within the deadlines. Let’s call it 120 days for a conservative round number. This works out to the equivalent of (a little more than) a 4.5% annualized yield. If you assume the current 4.30% APY holds, that would be an estimated 4.5% + 4.3% = 8.8% annualized yield for those 120 days.

A 4-month CD at nearly 9% APY is not bad if you have a lot of money and a short-term horizon for it. Again, this one is only for new customers or those that have closed their previous CapOne360 savings-type accounts by January 1, 2021.

Update: As of 10/27/23, the 6% APY savings account is no longer showing as available on the free tier. You must be on the $79/month tier to get it now. I wonder if they will grandfather the existing users, otherwise that is a bad look for a supposedly reliable firm that you are trusting with financial advice… Definitely will avoid now.

Original post:

Let’s welcome Domain Money to the “small fintech with big ambitions” club. Their primary goal is to provide a suite of financial services including unlimited advice from CFPs (Certified Financial Planners) and income tax preparation, all for a flat $79 a month. However, some of their perks including model portfolios and a 6% APY savings account are available at no monthly fee as a sort of teaser:

6% APY is a nice number, and this is the first savings account I’ve seen reach it (other than some rewards checking accounts that require a bunch of debit card transactions, hat tip to Doctor of Credit), but it comes with some concerns. They are a relatively new startup that recently pivoted from crypto and stock trading. The terms stipulate that you can only initiate fund transfers from within the app, and it must be to/from a linked bank account that they approve. Cash and check deposits are not allowed. (They do not provide a routing number or account number.) It’s a savings account, so the interest rate can change at any time. 6% APY is high enough over the current funds rate that it essentially a “bonus” in that they are losing money, so taken altogether it is a big question as to how long the rate will last. Cash deposits are held with Georgia Banking Company, Member FDIC.

On the positive side, I did notice that the founder was previously Head of Product at Marcus by Goldman Sachs, and I liked the user interface over at Marcus. They must also have some good relationships with folks within the Apple App Store, as they have earned “App of the Day”, “Best Apps for Investing”, and “Essential Finance Apps” honors despite a very short track record.