Amboy Direct 12-month Add-on eSavings CD Available Nationwide

UPDATE: 8/3/17 - The eSavings CD rate has gone back down to 1.51% APY. I've updated the July 15th post with this new rate.

UPDATE: 7/20/17 - The eSavings CD rate has increased from 1.51% to 1.65% APY! I've updated the July 15th post with this new rate.

If you’ve been following the saga of Amboy Direct’s 12-month eSavings CD over the past few months, you’ve seen several updates, including rate increases, a change in availability, and a balance cap increase. There’s one more update to talk about, and it’s a good one: DA has received written confirmation that the 12-month eSavings CD (1.51% APY) is available nationwide. The minimum deposit is $10k, with a maximum balance cap of $250k.

Note: Amboy Direct’s Personal eSavings Account (0.80% APY) is also nationally available, but the Business Money Market Maximizer and the Money Market Max More are only available to New Jersey residents.

A great feature of the 12-month eSavings CD is the ability to make additional deposits in first six months of the account's term. According to the eSavings CD Account Details,

You can make additional deposits during first 6 months from your current bank account using our Bank to Bank transfer capability. Deposits are made by logging into your Amboy Direct account and initiating a transfer.

Obviously, being able to add funds for six months is always advantageous. It’s also quite useful if you have another CD maturing and you’re looking for somewhere to place that money on a relatively short-term basis. For example,

• You have $75k in a CD that matures in four months.
• You open a 12-month eSavings CD today with a $10k minimum deposit.
• You deposit the $75k in the eSavings CD four months from now.
• The $75k essentially becomes an 8-month CD earning 1.51% APY.

The only piece of information I could not find on Amboy Direct’s website was how to receive the funds from a maturing eSavings CD. According to CSR, upon maturing the funds are automatically transferred into a Personal eSavings Account, giving you immediate access to the funds. The Personal eSavings Account will have the same account number as the eSavings CD. That account number also serves as the “Access ID” that is used to log into the Bank’s online banking platform.

As stated in a Disclosure that is attached to the online application, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:

The early withdrawal penalty will be 6 months loss of interest at the rate and balance at the time of withdrawal.
In the event of an early withdrawal, your account will be converted to an eSavings account and be subject to an interest penalty.

Availability

Amboy Direct is the internet division of Amboy Bank, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey. U.S. citizens and resident aliens, 18 years or older, who have a valid government ID can open an account with Amboy Direct either online or by mail.

CSR stressed that the money that will be used to fund the eSavings CD should be available in the personal account that will be linked, as funding will take place immediately following the verification process.

Amboy Direct’s More Product Information page explains how the online funding process is initiated.

Account must be opened with an initial deposit from your personal account with check writing privileges.

Amboy Direct will send two small deposits to your personal checking account that must be verified. To verify, review your transaction history at the bank where your checking account resides and identify the two deposits. After reviewing, you will need to confirm the amounts by logging in to Amboy Direct and entering the amounts on a verification page. These deposits are sent as a fraud protection measure.

You must validate the 2 small deposits in your linked account no later than 50 days from the date the first deposit was made. If you do not validate the link within 50 days, Amboy Direct may return the initial deposit to the linked account and close the Savings account.

Transfer capabilities will be available immediately after "Verification process" is complete.

Bank Overview

As the internet division of Amboy Bank, Amboy Direct operates under the Bank’s FDIC Certificate (# 6423) and shares its financial history.

Amboy Direct/Amboy Bank has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with Texas Ratio of 13.02% (above average), based on March 31, 2017 data. In the past year, the Bank has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $86.84 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 5.19%. Please refer to our financial overview of Amboy Direct/ Amboy Bank for more details.

Founded in 1888 as the First National Bank South Amboy, Amboy Bank (Amboy Direct’s parent company) has grown into a multi-billion dollar institution with 23 branches located across central New Jersey. Amboy Direct was established as a division of the Bank in 1995 and became an internet banking service in 2003.

How the eSavings CD Compares

When compared to the 213 similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that require a similar minimum deposit and are available nationwide, Amboy Direct's 12-month eSavings CD APY currently ranks second. The option to make additional deposits within the first six months only increases its intrinsic value.

The above rates are accurate as of 7/20/2017.

To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our CD rates table, or our Rates Map page.