Etrade Bank Ending Savings - Looking for New Online Bank

[Mysto]

Etrade Bank sent me an email telling me that they were transferring my savings account to Discovery Bank next month. They have not announced anything about the checking account but I feel that it can't be far behind. It looks like they are leaving the banking business. I have been very happy with them but I feel I must now find a new online bank. (What a pain this is going to be) I have loved the security pendant - the ability to instantly transfer funds between accounts and the comprehensive bill pay service.

I need both savings and checking - must include online bill pay and free atm access. Account fraud security an absolute requirement.

Looking for suggestions based on your own personal experience.

 

[Onward]

I also have chkng + savings accts at E*Trade. I've also been very happy with them. But I haven't gotten any emails about acct closure, and their website still allows you to open chkng + savings accts.

I'll be watching this thread closely!

 

[ksr]

I also have chkng + savings accts at E*Trade. I've also been very happy with them. But I haven't gotten any emails about acct closure, and their website still allows you to open chkng + savings accts.

I'll be watching this thread closely!

Ditto. It sounds like the beginning of the end though, doesn't it? I think I will start researching alternatives, just in case.

 

[LOL!]

May I recommend Wells Fargo -- get the PMA setup with free brokerage trades on stocks, ETFs and mutual funds (including Vanguard funds). Free bill pay, free ATM, free checks, free transfers between checking & brokerage. Free, etc.

Caveat: You need $25K in your accounts combined to get everything free. It should not be a problem since your brokerage & IRA assets count toward the $25K.

I get free overseas ATM transactions as well.

 

[semtex]

highly recomment ally bank(gmacbank previously). high mm rate, atm/debt card, check, nice service.

 

[Onward]

I get free overseas ATM transactions as well.

That's important to me. I'll be looking for a bank with no transaction fee on overseas withdrawals. Unfortunately Well Fargo is not an option for me. Any other recommendations?

BTW, part way down this page is a good matrix of cards and transaction fees (not sure how up to date): Credit/Debit/ATM Cards and Foreign Exchange - FlyerGuide Wiki

 

[Mysto]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Here's the email I received - It states that only the online SAVINGS account is moving but I can't see how they would keep the checking and move the more lucrative savings:

We are writing to let you know that your E*TRADE Bank account referenced above will soon be transferred to Discover Bank, and become a Discover Online Savings Account. This follows our plan to focus more exclusively on providing optimal investing solutions to our customers. We expect the transfer to occur on or about March 7, 2010. If you have already closed your account, please disregard this message.

Transferring your savings account will provide you with these important benefits:

[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Rates that are at least 5X the national average¹ – currently 1.35% APY²[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica] •[/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Continued FDIC insurance up to $250,000 per individual accountholder³[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]No minimum balance requirement[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Banking Specialists available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week[/FONT] [FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]
And you'll still enjoy fast and free online money transfers4, direct deposit capabilities and secure, 24/7 online access you enjoyed at E*TRADE Bank. For more information on Discover Bank's Online Savings Account, visit DiscoverBank.com/welcome.

If you have any other E*TRADE Bank or E*TRADE Securities accounts, this transfer will NOT affect them in any way.

Please note the following:
[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]While the account transfer is pending, you can access your account online as usual and continue to use Quick Transfer to make individual and automated deposits.[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica] •[/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Seven calendar days prior to the account transfer, Quick Transfers from accounts outside of E*TRADE will no longer be processed. Please take the time to delete any scheduled or recurring Quick Transfers you have for your account by this date.[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Any checks you wish to deposit must also be received at least seven calendar days prior to the transfer. Checks received after this deadline will be returned to you by mail.[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Direct deposits will be accepted up until March 5th, 2010. Direct deposits that come in after March 5th will be returned to the sending institution.[/FONT] [FONT=verdana, helvetica, arial] • [/FONT][FONT=arial,verdana, helvetica]Past statements and tax documents will continue to be available on etrade.com after the transfer is completed. Your account history will not be transferred to Discover Bank.[/FONT]

 

[LOL!]

Check Schwab and Fidelity as well.

Most important for me is good/easy/trivial interaction between brokerage and checking, so Ally is not an option. I do not care about interest-rate paid on checking or savings at all, but I do know that is important to many folks.

 

[Mysto]

Heads up for the other etrade bank guys - I called etrade bank - I'm being dumped (my words not theirs) because my brokerage account is inactive and I am not maintaining a high balance. I have moved much of my savings to other banks paying higher interest. If you didn't get an email it probably won't affect you.

Thanks for the replies. I am going to check out Ally bank as I already have savings there. Will miss etrade though.

 

[FIREd]

I highly recommend USAA Federal savings bank.

You will get free ATM, free checking and savings, free online bill pay. Rates on CDs and savings are pretty competitive too.

 

[ksr]

May I recommend Wells Fargo -- get the PMA setup with free brokerage trades on stocks, ETFs and mutual funds (including Vanguard funds). Free bill pay, free ATM, free checks, free transfers between checking & brokerage. Free, etc.

Thanks for the recommendation. I recall you mentioning in another post that you were happy with Wells Fargo, and am planning to look there first.

 

[Onward]

I highly recommend USAA Federal savings bank.

Thanks for the link. I bookmarked it, even though it looks like my E*Trade account isn't going anywhere.

 

[Gotadimple]

Discover is not bad as an online bank.

You may also want to check out ING Direct, also an online bank. Very easy to set up and you can link your savings account to an external account to manage transfers of money.

Be aware, that they will be sold by 2013 to an American bank (currently owned by Belgium-based ING) to meet EU requirements. I'm not worried about any potential sale, with their deposits, and the investment in banking security (the most secure according to a neighbor who does Internet security for Amazon.com), I doubt little will change.

Rates on savings are OK, rates on CDs also acceptable.

Rita

 

[antmary]

We are having a CD maturing later this month. I am considering creating a CD ladder at Ally. The rates are great (relatively speaking, of course).

 

[Gone4Good]

I just opened 2 online bank accounts.

Capital One Direct for online savings. They're paying 1.45% + a 10% bonus on accounts over $15K (so basically paying 1.595%). They were paying 1.55% + 10% when I signed up. I expect that will keep moving down as long as the Fed is at 0%

Ally Bank for a CD. They're offering 3.15% for a 5 yr CD. They only charge 60 days interest to withdraw money early so it is a pretty good place to park cash and wait for rates to go up.

 

[haha]

Discover is not bad as an online bank.

For people who opened accounts last fall, they still offer 1.59% on a simple savings account.

Ha

 

[Onward]

Here's an explanation of the E*Trade/Discover isssue:

When Your Bank Changes Hands at SmartMoney.com

 

[Pete]

I originally signed on with Telebank because they had the best rates in the nation for CD's. E trade took them over and when they ran into trouble they dropped their rates to some of the lowest in the nation. https://bankus.etrade.com/e/t/bank/home
They act like a bank that doesn't want your money. I've been moving CD's every time they come due. My son likes ING. Their rates look a lot better. Certificate Of Deposit interest rates from ING DIRECT USA

 

[Ronnieboy]

I use INGdirect and ING Orange checking for bill pay. It has been smooth. I wasn't aware that they were being sold to an American Bank. Hope that doesn't change anything

I have a saving account with Ally and was just notified that they have started online checking too. They pay double the interest on checking that ING does (0.25 vs 0.5) so I am thinking about switching. I do love ING's interface though....