Online Savings Accounts -- Emigrant Direct and HSBC at 5.05%

Oct 30, 2004
11,442
32
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Hot or not? You decide.

Both Emigrant Direct and HSBC are offering (as of this posting) online savings accounts with interest rates of 5.05% (and I think HSBC is offering 6% on new money until the end of April).

Anyhoo, I think I'm finally going to get off my lazy butt and open up an online savings account. Since both have the same interest rate (ignoring the temporary 6%), which one is better? Which one is easier to manage? Do you feel that one is more secure than the other?
 

SoulAssassin

Diamond Member
Feb 1, 2001
6,135
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Have had Emigrant for a couple years and I've been very happy. WTDirect (Wilmington Trust - very good B&M bank in the DE area) is 5.26% if your balance is >10K. There's a thread at FW Finance that has all the leading rates.
 

cyberkost

Lifer
Sep 24, 2005
20,228
1
81
First, this isn't really a hot deal. There're are some fully liquid FDIC insured instruments with higher rates. Having said that, I use both. HSBC interface is pain in the butt, the other thing that freaks me out that they don't show YTD interest -- only monthly update, and it's not the 1st of the month, it's every month since account opening (say, you open yours on 13th, you'll get to see acumulated interest on 13th of every month). ED is much better and user friendly. The only thing that speaks in favor of HSBC is that you can link another savings account to it, whereas ED requires a voided check to be sent in in order to complete account linking. It may not be a problem for most, but it may be a problem for those who open a checking account just to get a bonus of some kind and never actually intend to write checks against it (and thus never bother / pay money to order them) ...
 
Oct 30, 2004
11,442
32
91
Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
Have had Emigrant for a couple years and I've been very happy. WTDirect (Wilmington Trust - very good B&M bank in the DE area) is 5.26% if your balance is >10K. There's a thread at FW Finance that has all the leading rates.

Hadn't heard of WTDirect before. I'll have to go find that FW thread.
 

MBony

Platinum Member
Sep 16, 2003
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HSBC is offering 6.00% until April 30.

How are they shady?
 

weiv0004

Senior member
Oct 28, 2004
324
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I had an HSBC account open for a few months now. While I admit the site is far from user friendly, I haven't noticed any shifty-ness.
 

esquared

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
Forum Director
Oct 8, 2000
24,613
5,766
146
HSBC is a huge bank. Couldn't find any other really current data (2006), except for wikipedia, which has pretty much current data, mainly from The Economist. HSBC is in the top four of all the categories listed, (assests, market capitalization, profit, shareholder equity and Tier 1 Capital), FWIW.

wiki banks
 

Delerious

Senior member
Nov 10, 2001
668
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My friend from college used to use HSBC for some reason, we called it the "Homeless School Boys Club"

HSBC seems like a larger bank than Emigrant from what I've seen...
 

Jiggz

Diamond Member
Mar 10, 2001
4,329
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Originally posted by: WhipperSnapper

HSBC is an international bank (Hong Kong Savings Bank of China, I think). So, yeah, it's bigger than Emigrant.

Here's an interesting one. Amtrust Direct money market. Currently has a 5.36% APY but some people reported having issues and they might do a "hard" credit pull.

http://www.amtrustdirect.com/?wt.mc_id=gglmoney_market

Hongkong-Shanghai Banking Corp, the biggest bank in Asia! Shady? No way, you might want to take a tour of Hongkong and see for yourself.
 

esquared

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
Forum Director
Oct 8, 2000
24,613
5,766
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HSBC is based in London (since the 90's) and founded by a Scot in 1865. It's the largest in the world in a couple of categories

HSBC
 

DannyLove

Lifer
Oct 17, 2000
12,876
4
76
I got HSBC, I opened it up not too long ago. Seems fine with me so far...

shady-ness??? examples?

 

crimson117

Platinum Member
Aug 25, 2001
2,094
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76
Originally posted by: amdskip
I have ING, is it worth changing to Emigrant?
I'm in the same boat... it's about 0.5% more at emigrant/hsbc than at ing direct. I might switch, myself. ING always seems to lag behind the others in increasing rates.
 

BIGFOOTPI

Golden Member
Mar 8, 2005
1,029
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I recently moved my ING orange savings to a new ING Electric checking and get 5.05% APY with balance of $50,000 to $99,999.99. If you have over $100,000 is 5.3% APY (since only $100,000 is FDIC insured I suggest, if you DO put 100k in there, draining off the interest back into another bank's account as it comes in ( not that I think ING will get H4XX or anything ;) ... then again, I am sure there are ALOT more lucrative ways to invest $100k then in something like this, I just havent had time to think about/Look into it, but getting the APY of a good CD in a online based checking account aint doin too bad )
 

SoulAssassin

Diamond Member
Feb 1, 2001
6,135
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Originally posted by: crimson117
Originally posted by: amdskip
I have ING, is it worth changing to Emigrant?
I'm in the same boat... it's about 0.5% more at emigrant/hsbc than at ing direct. I might switch, myself. ING always seems to lag behind the others in increasing rates.

They do and they will continue to for the foreseeable future. ING has too much money in deposits now and there mortgage business isn't doing that well. Thus they're not able to loan out all the money that people are giving them, thus they have no reason to increase their rates which would obviously pay more out to the customers and drive people to give them more money.

Here's the current list from FW:

Geauga Savings Bank Immediate Access Tiered Savings Account
5.45% APY $25,000 - $99,000 (fees if below $25,000)
2.00% APY $99,000+
No interest paid until Dec 31st, even if account is closed!
Fatwallet discussion

Countrywide Bank Savings
5.40% APY $50,000 - $2,499,999
5.25% APY $10,000 - $49,999
ACH originate: YES, next day, but with only one bank, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Bank of America Money Market Savings Account through NEA
5.37% for $50,000+
5.11% for $500 - $49,999
5.54% APY $50,000+ for first 60 days
5.28% APY $500 - $49,999 for first 60 days
$500 to open, $2,500 to avoid maintenance fees after 2/16/07
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: see AAA money market below
Fatwallet discussion
Fatwallet discussion

Bank of America Money Market Savings Account through AAA
5.38% APY $50,000+
5.11% APY $10,000 - $49,999
$1,000 to open, $2,500+ to avoid fees
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, ATM card: YES, debit card: see below
BofA checking account customers can add a AAA money market account link onto their existing checking debit card. Some representatives incorrectly claim that accounts domiciled in different states cannot be linked on a single debit card (or ATM card) because they fail to realize the additional system entry steps needed to create multi-state links.
Fatwallet discussion
Fatwallet discussion

AmTrust Direct E-Money Market
5.36% APY $1+
$1,000 to open
No fees, no minimum balance, free ACH.
ACH originate: YES, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Amboy Direct Premium Online Savings (ACH)
5.35% APY $20,000+
5.25% APY $1+
ACH originate: YES, next day, but with only one bank, ACH target: DEPOSITS ONLY, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

BankUnited Savings Account
5.35% APY $5,000+ to open ($300+ to avoid fees)
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Zions Bank Deseret Money Market
5.34% APY $50,000+
5.30% APY $0 - $49,999
$100 to open
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: YES
Not available to residents of Utah.
Fatwallet discussion

Union Federal Bank High Yield Money Market Savings Account
5.31% APY No Minimum
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: YES
Fatwallet discussion

Igobanking (Online division of Flushing Bank)
5.30% APY $1+
ACH originate: YES, but takes 3 days over $2000, ACH target: yes, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

OneUnited Bank UNITY Internet Savings Account
5.30% APY $10+
Fatwallet discussion

Apple Bank Grand Yield Savings Direct
5.27% APY $1+
ACH originate: YES, but costs $10 for next day, ACH target: ?, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Resource Bank eMoney Market Account
5.27% APY $100,000+
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO

Stearns Bank Stearns Money Market "Above the Norm" Account
5.27% APY $100,000+
can safely deposit $400,000 in their four FDIC member banks

WT Direct
5.26% APY $10,000+

FNBO Direct
5.25% APY $1+
$1 to open
Only 1 ACH linked account
Fatwallet discussion

E-Loan Savings Account
5.25% APY $0+
$5,000 to open. No fees for low balance, but E-Loan reserves right to close your account if balance is below $500 for 90 days in any 12-month period.
ACH originate: YES, ACH target: NO, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Presidential Bank Premier Savings
5.25% APY $0 - $34,999
3.00% APY $35,000+
$5,000 to open, no minimum balance, free inbound ACH, fee outbound if using its fund transfer service. However, no fee on both transfer IN and OUT if it's used as ACH target.

ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
check deposits earn interest: DAY OF DEPOSIT
Fatwallet discussion

IndyMac Internet Top Tier Money Market
5.25% APY $75,000+

Advanta Bank Corp Money Market
5.25% APY $100,000+
5.20% APY $50,000 - $99,999
5.15% APY $10,000 - $49,999
5.10% APY $1,000 - $9,999
$2,500 to open, $100 to avoid fees.
ACH originate: WITHDRAWALS ONLY, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: NO

Geauga Savings Bank Money Market Plus Checking Account
5.25% APY $25,000 - $99,000 (fees if below $25,000, 1.00% $99,000+)

Superior Savings Incredible Money Market
5.25% APY $100,000+
Undisclosed APY $99,999 to $25,000
0.00% APY below $25,000
$25,000 minimum daily to avoid $20 monthly fee.
NEW money, NEW accounts only. Starter checks.

Centennial Bank Variable Rate Passbook Savings
5.21% APY $50,000+
4.95% APY $25,000 - $49,999
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: NO, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Capital One/Costco Money Market
5.20% APY $100+
minimum deposit of $5,000
Allows ACH transfers in and out in addition to check-writing and ATM access
Fatwallet discussion

DiscoverBank
5.20% APY $50,000+
5.20% APY $25,000 to $49,999
5.14% APY $10,000 to $24,999
$2,500 to open and avoid fees


Virtual Bank eMoney Market (ACH)
5.13% APY $100,000+
$100 to open
ACH originate: YES, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

Park National Bank Advantage Money Market
5.13% APY $0.01+
$100 to open, $10,000+ to avoid fees

Umbrella Bank Pot o' Gold
5.10% APY $50,000+
5.05% APY $25,000-49,999
5.00% APY $10,000-$24,999
5.00% APY $5,000-$9,999
4.95% APY $1,000-$4,999
$1,000+ to avoid fees
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: YES
check deposits earn interest: DAY OF DEPOSIT
Fatwallet discussion

Mybanking Direct
5.10% APY $5,000+

Imperial Capital Bank iMoney Market Checking
5.10% APY $100,000+
$2,500 minimum to open, $5,000 to avoid fees

Gloucester County Federal Savings Bank CyberSaver
5.09% APY $25,000+
3.50% APY $0 - $25,000
promo: 1st 90 days on all accounts 5.28 APY
$100 to open, no minimum balance
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
check deposits earn interest: DAY OF DEPOSIT
Fatwallet discussion

Corus Bank
5.15% APY $0.01+ Managed Money Market ($100 to open, $10,000+ to avoid fees)
5.15% APY $100,000+ Ultimate Interest Checking ($50 to open, 10,000+ to avoid fees)

GMAC Bank Insured Savings/Money Market (ACH)
5.10% APY $500+
4.99% APY < $500
ACH originate: YES, next day, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: YES
Fatwallet discussion<locked
Fatwallet discussion

NewDominion Bank Money Market
5.07% APY $0.01
$3,000 to open and avoid fees
ACH originate: YES, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: YES
FatWallet Discussion

HSBC Bank OnlineSavings Account (ACH)
5.05% APY $1+ ACH originate: YES, 4 business days, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: YES [This is an ATM Card, not a Debit Card. It can't be used to purchase something.]
Promo rate: 6.00% APY for "new money" from 1/26/07-4/30/07
Note: HSBC ACH transfer results in 2 days lost interest if initiated on Monday, Tuesday. Up to 4 days lost interest if transferred later in the week.
Fatwallet discussion
Fatwallet discussion

Emigrant Bank American Dream Savings Account (ACH)
5.05% APY $0.01+
ACH originate: YES, next day, but only with non-money market checking accounts, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

E*Trade Bank Complete Savings Account
5.05% APY $1+
$1 minimum initial balance, No low-balance fees.
ACH originate: YES, next day, ACH target: YES, checks: NO, debit card: NO
Fatwallet discussion

GE High Yield Savings
5.05% APY $15,000+
No minimum balance and no fees.

Washington Mutual Statement Savings
5.00% APY $1+ (requires Checking Account)
Fatwallet discussion


Heritage Bank Heritage Direct Savings
5.00% APY $1,000+

Union Federal Bank Direct Jumbo Money Market Account
5.00% APY $50,000+
ACH originate: NO, ACH target: YES, checks: YES, debit card: NO
 

DannyLove

Lifer
Oct 17, 2000
12,876
4
76
SoulAssassin: If you would create a thread with links for all those institutions you'd be the SH|T!
 

Dacalo

Diamond Member
Mar 31, 2000
8,778
3
76
Originally posted by: crimson117
Originally posted by: amdskip
I have ING, is it worth changing to Emigrant?
I'm in the same boat... it's about 0.5% more at emigrant/hsbc than at ing direct. I might switch, myself. ING always seems to lag behind the others in increasing rates.

I have both ING and Emigrant and both are great. ING's layout is much better, but Emigrant has been improving their web page.
 

SoulAssassin

Diamond Member
Feb 1, 2001
6,135
2
0
Originally posted by: DannyLove
SoulAssassin: If you would create a thread with links for all those institutions you'd be the SH|T!

I don't have to, someone already did. :)

http://www.fatwallet.com/t/52/437553/

Note to mods: I recognize that FW is a "competing" site in regards to Hot Deals and direct linking to them may be frowned upon, however, this is a link to their Finance forum. AT has no equivalent/competing forum so I hope it's allowed.
 

kindlr

Member
Nov 26, 2001
101
0
0
Just because a company has Shanghai in the name does not make them shady. Freaking xenophobes. The company is British anyway.