After initially announcing job cuts of 6350 employees in July, Wachovia (NYSE: WB) this week said that as many as 6950 employees may now be out of work. That doesn’t include recent announcements of the departure of CFO Thomas J. Wurtz, and Chief Risk Officer Don Truslow. Wachovia is expecting the job cuts to cost as much as $650 million as it restructures it workforce. Recent days have seen the announcement of a class action lawsuit from shareholders, regulatory investigations, and increases in the amount estimated losses originally announced just a few weeks ago. Wachovia stock closed Monday at $18.21 per share off from its 52 week highs of more than $50.

Continue reading "Wachovia Worsens but Still Survives" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 8:06 AM | Permalink

Washington Mutual, sponsor of the WaMu Online Savings Account, raised their interest rate today to 3.75% APY. This new rate makes WaMu the highest of the 15 different online accounts that ManagingMoney.com tracks.

Continue reading "WaMu Online Savings Goes Up to 3.75% APY" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:56 AM | Permalink

Everyone needs a savings account in order to put away money to use for emergencies, special occasions, and for the future. Unfortunately, many people don’t have bank accounts because they feel they either don’t need one or can’t afford to save any extra money because of their current income. Not only do you need a savings account, but no matter how much—or how little you make, you have the ability to save more than you may think. Even a mere $5 or $10 placed into a savings account each time you receive a paycheck can add up quicker than you ever thought possible. Most likely you won’t even notice $10 missing from your paycheck, as it’s easy to spend this amount on fast food or other miscellaneous items, which makes it a lot smarter to save the money rather than spend it on fast foods.

Continue reading "Bank of America's "Keep the Change" Program" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:30 AM | Permalink

E*Trade Financial announced today that they are increasing the rate on their Complete Savings Account from 3.15% to 3.30% APY.

Continue reading "E*Trade Complete Savings Rate Increases to 3.30% APY" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 11:46 AM | Permalink

It doesn’t matter if you currently bank with a credit union or a bank, chances are your financial institution charges fees anytime you overdraw your account. These fees, which currently average around $25 - $40 per transaction, are charged to your account each time you have a check or debit card transaction post to your account yet you don’t have enough funds available to cover it. As a courtesy, many financial institutions will often pay the transactions, depending on the circumstances and whether or not you overdraw your account regularly. There are ways to avoid paying these fees, especially if they occur often, to help save you from paying money unnecessarily to your bank.

Continue reading "Checking Accounts: How to Avoid Overdraft Fees" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 6:59 AM | Permalink

As of June 19th WTDirect's Savings Account rate is officially increasing to 3.26% APY. This marks their first rate increase in 9 months. Recently we have noticed a number of the larger online banks beginning to raise rates as they fight for investor deposits. Although the economy is slowing it is not dead yet and the online savings accounts represent one of the best ways to earn a competitive yield with minimal risk. Wilmington Trust Corporation (NYSE: WL) is a financial services holding company that provides a variety of banking and financial services. It provides Wealth Advisory Services for high net worth clients in 22 countries, and Corporate Client Services for institutional clients in 81 countries. Its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Wilmington Trust Company, which was founded in 1903, is one of the largest personal trust providers in the United States and the leading retail and commercial bank in Delaware.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 9:29 AM | Permalink

Just about everyone can appreciate the convenience of having a checking account. Checking accounts allow you to easily pay your bills, whether on the phone, on the web, by mail or in person. You can also set up automatic withdrawals with a checking account, to avoid late payment penalties and eliminate the need to remember when certain bills are due each month. The list of the advantages goes on and on, depending on how you choose to use your account and what goals you have in mind.

What most people fail to realize, though, is that having a bank account is a privilege, and if for some reason you don’t responsibly handle your account, that privilege will be revoked.

Continue reading "Tips for Opening a Checking Account After Being Reported to Chexsystems" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:24 AM | Permalink

Imagine this scenario: Your daughter is out-of-state at college and calls you and says, "Mom, I need extra money for books, now!" What do you do? Well, if you had Obopay, a new service we recently came across, you would immediately send her the funds she needed with your cell phone.

Continue reading "Now You Can Send and Receive Money with Your Cell Phone" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 12:57 PM | Permalink

Hoping to build on its newfound expertise in credit cards and on NASCAR fans' loyalty, Bank of America Corp. has begun offering a NASCAR checking account to try to drive more retail business to its automated teller machines and branches. This follows on the heels of the NASCAR RacePoints^SM Visa® Credit Card issued by FIA Cards Services, N.A. which we discussed in a previous blog entry. It appears that "sports affinity" marketing and the financial services industry have discovered one another.

Continue reading "Bank of America Offering NASCAR Checking Accounts" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 4:09 PM | Permalink

In the "old days" if your parents were budgeting their income chances are good that they used the "envelope system". A number of envelopes were titled or earmarked for certain expenses, such as the mortgage, utilities, or dining out. Whenever a paycheck was cashed the appropriate pro-rata portion was placed in each envelope and the family knew exactly how much money was available for each expense until the next paycheck arrived. It was a good system and in fact many people still use it today. However, as technology has advanced new computer-based budgeting systems arose that are more accurate and also include forecasting features.

Continue reading "Mvelopes Combines Budgeting and Online Bill Pay" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:00 PM | Permalink

As a follow up to a story we first reported on September 20th of this year about both MFS and Putnam Funds being on the market, the Dow Jones News Service reported on Friday that Wachovia Corp. (WB) is a potential suitor or joint venture partner for MFS Funds.

Continue reading "Wachovia Is In Talks To Buy MFS Funds" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 1:35 PM | Permalink

Washington Mutual, also known as WaMu, has joined in the competition for your online savings account dollars with the introduction of their WaMu Free Checking TM. Starting off with a 5% Introductory APY for investors that open both a Savings Account and a Checking Account, the account also offers a number of bells and whistles potential investors should find attractive.

Continue reading "Washington Mutual Offers WaMu Free Checking TM Account" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 4:10 PM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect American Dream Savings Account , continues to be a leader in Online Banking when they raised their interest rate this morning to 5.15% APY. This increase has admittedly caught us by surprise as Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, signaled at their last meeting that interest rate increases were likely on hold for a while. The Fed said there were signs that the economy was slowing and that although controlling inflation is important, the Fed wanted to balance that against risking pushing the economy into a recession with an overally restrictive fiscal policy. Emigrant apparently wasn't listening and has instead decided that attracting depositors with attractive interest rates is more important. We suggest investors take advantage of these high rates while they can. Guaranteed, they will not last forever.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:35 AM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect American Dream Savings Account ,increased their interest rate to 5.00% APY this morning. Happy July 4th! Three of the nations top Banks are now at 5% or greater on their savings accounts. Emigrant today followed the earlier lead of Citibank and Everbank who both went to the 5% range immediately after Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, last raised rates. At the risk of being wrong, we think this is it for a while. The Fed implied that any rate changes going forward will be based on the health of the economy, not inflation concerns. As the economy is showing some weakness in Real Estate and the consumer is dealing with high energy prices, we feel the Fed will hold off on any more rate increases for a while. If we end up being wrong, we would appreciate someone sending us a new crystal ball.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 8:19 AM | Permalink

Just when we thought it couldn't get any better Citibank today raised the interest rate on their e-Savings Account to 5.00%. Last week we reported that Emigrant went to 4.80%, but now Citibank has retaken the throne. Regional Bank stocks took a beating last week as many reported a significant outflow of deposits. Since Citibank launched their e-Savings account a couple of months ago they have had a net inflow in excess of $3 billion in deposits. That money had to come from somewhere and we suspect the smaller banks is where it came from. Any investor can now open up numerous online accounts and electronically move their money to those paying the highest rates. Once again the Internet is leveling the playing field to the benefit of the consumer. You can search and sort the rates from the major Online Banks by visiting the ManagingMoney.com Banking Center. Stay tuned as this new banking battle heats up.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 5:10 AM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect American Dream Savings Account ,increased their interest rate to 4.80% APY this morning. This makes their rate one of the most competitive in the country. Rates have consistently been rising for months now, but even we are a bit surprised by this increase. Emigrant seems to be wanting to replace Ben Bernanke, the new Chairman of the Federal Reserve, by raising rates even before the Feds next meeting. This implies that competition is stiff among the online banks. We still expect the Fed to stop raising rates soon as the fine line between protecting against inflation and shifting the economy into a recession is probably being approached. Investors should take advantage of these high, insured rates while they can.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 8:42 AM | Permalink

INGDirect, the sponsor of the popular Orange Savings Account, raised their interest rate this morning to 4.25% APY. This follows Emigrant which raised just last week. One of the reasons given yesterday for the Stock Market's large decline was that investors were concerned that the Federal Reserve would continue to raise interest rates based on a strong economy. We are starting to become a little skeptical that rates are going to continue to rise, particularly with oil prices continuing to go up and obvious softness in the Real Estate market. Therefore, this is a good time for Online Bank investors to get a competitive yield with no risk to principal. See our Banking Center for a listing of all our Online Savings Account and CD providers.

Posted by Nickie - Editor at 7:00 AM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect American Dream Savings Account^TM raised their interest rate today to 4.65%.

Continue reading "Emigrant Increases Interest Rate to 4.65%" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:21 AM | Permalink

Countrywide Bank has raised the interest rate on their Online Banking product to 4.15% APY. This follows INGDirect which also went to 4.15% APY a week ago. In addition to Online Savings, Countrywide also offers competitive Certificate of Deposit rates. If you are not taking advantage of the high interest rates available from the online banks you are really missing out. Most of the online rates are double what conventional banks are offering. In addition, the accounts "link" to your existing bank accounts making it easy to transfer funds between the two and they are also FDIC insured. You can see our complete selection in the ManagingMoney.com Banking Center.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 4:44 PM | Permalink

ING Direct, the sponsor of the popular Orange Savings Account raised their interest rate yesterday to 4.15% APY. This is good news for investors looking for safety and a competitive yield on their savings. All year interest rates have been inching up as the economy continues to perform well. ING is consistently one of the leaders with their rates. Online accounts like the Orange Savings are meant to complement an investors existing bank account rather than replace it. Investors "attach" their Orange Savings Account to one or more other traditional accounts and can then "sweep" extra funds from their low interest accounts into the higher-yielding ING account. Be sure to check out our Banking Center where you can compare rates on over 16 of the more popular National online bank accounts.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 6:55 AM | Permalink

One of the best "teaser rates" we are seeing in the Internet Banking space is the EverBank FreeNet Checking Account.They are currently offering 5.51% APY for the first three months for new customers. The account also comes with free online banking, free check writing, and a free Visa® CheckCard. At the end of the three month period EverBank guarantees you'll continue to earn a yield that ranks in the top 5% of competitive accounts as tracked in the Bank Rate Monitor National Index™ of leading banks and thrifts. With a minimum of only $1,500 to open an account, FDIC insurance, no monthly fees , and a 100% satisfaction guarantee, this is probably worth a look.

Posted by Mike - Editor at 12:58 PM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect American Dream Savings Account^TM raised their interest rate today to 4.50%.

Continue reading "Emigrant Increases APY to 4.50%" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:45 AM | Permalink

Continue reading "Countrywide Bank Raises Money Market Rates" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 12:30 PM | Permalink

Continue reading "CitiBank Online Offers Free iPod Shuffle" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 12:42 PM | Permalink

Emigrant Bank, sponsor of the popular EmigrantDirect Savings Account raised their interest rate today to 4.25%.

Continue reading "Emigrant Goes Up to 4.25%" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 11:50 AM | Permalink

INGDirect, the sponsors of the popular Orange Savings Account raised their interest rate on new deposits to 4.75% today. The battle for online Savings Account deposits continues to heat up, with the two main contestants being...

Continue reading "INGDirect Raises Interest Rate to 4.75%" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 7:14 AM | Permalink

On October 28, 2004, the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, called the Check 21 Act, went into effect. Basically, this law allows banks to process electronic images of checks instead of handling the actual paper checks. That change will have a significant impact on your checking account:

Continue reading "The Check 21 Act and Your Canceled Checks" »

Posted by Mike - Editor at 11:14 AM | Permalink