Arkansas Federal Credit Union Boosts 13-Month CD Special Rate

In August, Arkansas Federal Credit Union (Arkansas Federal) brought back its 13-month Certificate Special, offering a rate-leading APY. Following a 15-bps rate increase yesterday, the 13-month Certificate Special currently earns 5.75% APY – not as competitive as the 5.60% APY was in August, but a good rate, nonetheless.

The opening deposit must be at least $1k and is capped at $999,999,99. New money, defined as funds “not originally housed with Arkansas Federal,” is required but there are work-arounds if new money isn’t available.

According to the online application,

If funding is from an already established Arkansas Federal account, the member must also have a monthly direct deposit of at least $500 going to an Arkansas Federal checking account or already have an active checking account with at least 10 monthly transactions.

For current members that do not have an Arkansas Federal checking account, they may open a checking account with Arkansas Federal to qualify.

For current members with an inactive Arkansas Federal checking account, to qualify, a monthly direct deposit of at least $500 must be enabled.

The 13-month Certificate Special is also available as an IRA Certificate Special (Traditional and Roth), earning the same APY with the same deposit requirements.

Early Withdrawal Penalty

As stated on the Term Share Certificate Account Disclosure, the Early Withdrawal Penalty (EWP) reads as follows:

For Accounts having a term greater than or equal to 12 months but less
than 36 months, the penalty imposed will equal 180 days of dividends.

Partial withdrawals are allowed, but if the account has not yet earned enough dividends or if the dividends have already been paid, the penalty will be deducted from the principal.

The Credit Union reserves the right to require a member intending to make a withdrawal to give written notice of such intent not less than seven days and up to 60 days before any such withdrawal.

Availability

Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas Federal Credit Union offers membership to those who live or work anywhere in Arkansas through membership in the American Consumer Council (ACC). Arkansas Federal will pay the ACC’s one-time $10 joining fee on behalf of all applicants.

Employees and members of more than 700 businesses and organizations also qualify for membership.

Family members of a current Arkansas Federal member are welcome to apply.

Account Opening

Joining Atlantic Federal and/or opening a Certificate Special can be done online or at any of 19 full-service Arkansas branches, located in Benton, Bryant, Cabot, Conway (2), Fort Smith, Greenbrier, Hot Springs, Jacksonville, Little Rock (3), Little Rock AFB, North Little Rock (2), Rogers, Searcy, Sherwood, and Van Buren.

Share Savings is required to join Arkansas Federal Credit Union.
A $5 minimum balance is all you need to maintain your membership.

Funding and Other Details

The following information is from the Truth-in-Savings disclosure and a conversation with CSR.

• Funding – ACH (limited to $2.5k), wire ($12), check, or internal transfer
• CO-OP Shared Branch Participate – No.
• Ownership – Individual, joint, or trust, but a trust account must be opened in-branch.
• Dividends – Compounded daily/credited monthly and can compound in the Share Certificate or be deposited into an Arkansas Federal Share Savings account.
• Maturing Funds – Cashier’s check to address on file or transferred to an Arkansas Federal Share Savings account.
• Beneficiaries – Unlimited with equal shares; Social Security numbers are required.
• Grace Period – 10 calendar days before renewal as a 12-month Certificate.
• Credit Check – Soft pull.

Credit Union Overview

Arkansas Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 4.34% (excellent) based on June 30, 2023 data. In the past year, Arkansas FCU has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $115.86 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 8.26%. Please refer to our financial overview of Arkansas Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 10920) for more details.

Arkansas Federal Credit Union is currently the largest credit union in Arkansas, with nearly 148,000 members and assets in excess of $2.2 billion. Established in 1956, the original field of membership (FOM) was exclusive to personnel of the newly opened Little Rock Air Force Base. Following nine mergers in the 90s, the FOM began to expand and diversify, eventually extending membership all Arkansas residents.

How the 13-Month Certificate Special Compares

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationally and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, two banks and one credit union have higher rates than currently offered on the Arkansas Federal Credit Union 13-Month Certificate Special. The following table compares the 13-Month Certificate Special to the two highest-rate CDs from other credit unions and the two highest-rate CDs from banks.