DollarSavingsBank 60-Month CD Earns 2.80% APY

We’re approaching the second anniversary of CDs being added to DollarSavingsDirect’s product line. In November 2017, DA reader, Carpline, noted that DollarSavingsDirect had introduced three new CDs with rather pathetic rates: 6-month (1.50% APY), 16-month (1.25% APY), and 60-month (1.50% APY). Sperry8 posted a response that summed up what many DA readers were thinking:

Crazy low. What's the point of even adding these, DollarDirect?

Just two months later, the APYs were increased – not to rate-leader levels, but definitely in the neighborhood. With four rate increases in six weeks (January-February 2018), adding a total of 130 bps, the 60-month CD has continued to be the most competitive of the CDs. The minimum deposit for any of the DollarSavingsDirect CDs is $1k, with no stated balance cap.

In January 2018, two more CDs were added, both with decidedly unimpressive rates: 12-month (1.80% APY) and 24-month (2.00% APY). Those rates are still in effect today.

Savings Account

In February 2018, DollarSavingsDirect’s Savings Account offered the highest rate (1.80% APY) on nationally available savings account. Between April 2017 and February 2018 a total of 125 bps were added in six rate increases, giving rise to speculation that DollarSavingsDirect’s Savings Account might be the account to lead the charge in the rising rate environment. While the 1.80% APY hasn’t change in the past 18 months, DollarSavingsDirect’s sister bank, MySavingsDirect, has been offering 2.40% APY on its MySavings Account since December 2018. UPDATE 9/16/19: The MySavings Account rate has just fallen to 2.25% APY.

DollarSavingsDirect has a FAQs page, which answers a variety of questions from, “How do I open a Certificate of Deposit,” to “What types of precious metals do you offer?” The FAQs also explain how to name beneficiaries.

How can a beneficiary be added to an account?

For individual accounts, simply use the beneficiary tab under the account view. This will allow you to add a beneficiary, and you can also update the address of a current beneficiary.

For joint accounts, both depositors will need to sign a form that is available in the Title Change link under the Customer Service tab. You may mail the completed form and any required documentation to DollarSavingsDirect, Attn: Account Fulfillment, 13 Croton Avenue, Ossining, NY 10562.

As stated in the CD Account Disclosure document, the Early Withdrawal Penalty (EWP) reads as follows:

For an account with a term of one year or more, the penalty will be an amount equal to 180 days interest (whether earned or not) and calculated at the contract rate on the principal amount.

Breaking CD early is not necessarily guaranteed, as evidenced by this statement from the CD Account Disclosure:

Principal or any part thereof may not be withdrawn from the CD Account prior to maturity without the consent of the Bank.

Availability

DollarSavingsDirect is an internet division of Emigrant Bank, which is headquartered in New York City. DollarSavingsDirect offers its product line to individuals who are “at least 18 years old, have a social security number, a legal US address, and a personal checking account in a US bank.”

Opening any CD must be done online. The initial funding of a new Dollar Savings Account can be done online or by check, but subsequent deposits must be done electronically.

The check must be from the same bank account you established
as your linked funding account on the online application.

Bank Overview

As an internet division of New York-based Emigrant Bank, DollarSavingsDirect operates under Emigrant Bank’s FDIC Certificate and shares its financial history.

DollarSavingsDirect/Emigrant Bank has an overall health grade of "B" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 15.33% (above average) based on June 30, 2019 data. The Bank has an excellent capitalization level (22.51%), the results of holding $5.64 billion in assets with $1.27 billion in equity. Please refer to our financial overview of DollarSavingsDirect/Emigrant Bank (FDIC Certificate # 12054) for more details.

According to DollarSavingsDirect’s FAQs page,

Since each of EmigrantDirect, DollarSavingsDirect and MySavingsDirect is an online banking division of Emigrant Bank, any deposits you have at Emigrant Bank, EmigrantDirect, DollarSavingsDirect or MySavingsDirect are aggregated and FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor.

Founded as Emigrant Savings Bank in 1850 by members of the Irish Emigrant Society, Emigrant Bank is the oldest savings bank in New York City. Emigrant Bank has established three internet divisions in the past 14 years: EmigrantDirect (2005), DollarSavingsDirect (2009), and MySavingsDirect (2013). EmigrantDirect was the first internet bank to aggressively respond to the Fed’s rate hikes in 2005. That year, the Fed raised the federal funds rate from 2.25% to 4.25%, and EmigrantDirect responded with three rate hikes that increased its savings account APY from 3.00% to 4.00%..

How the CD Compares

When compared to the 179 similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that require a similar minimum deposit and are nationally available, DollarSavingsDirect’s 60-month CD APY currently ranks sixth.

The above rates are accurate as of 9/16/2019.

To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide in state specific, please refer to our CD Rates Table page.