Forbright Bank's 12-17 Month CD Is A Rate-Leader
Maryland-based Forbright Bank (former Congressional Bank) is currently offering a 12-17 month CD with an exceptional 5.25% APY. The minimum opening deposit is $1k, with no stated balance cap.
Forbright CDs are available as IRA CDs, but IRA CDs cannot be opened online and have significantly lower rates. For example, the 12-17 month IRA CD currently earns a non-competitive 3.75% APY.
As stated in the Online CD FAQ page, the Early Withdrawal Penalty (EWP) reads as follows:
If your account has an original maturity of less than 24 months, a penalty equal to three (3) months interest will be charged to your account.
The EWP (as written) is vague – three months interest of what? CSR clarified that partial withdrawals are not allowed; CDs can only be closed early, with the three months interest penalty applying to the entire CD balance.
Many thanks to DA reader, SYC, for the recent Forbright Bank Forum post, including the mention of the invaluable FAQ page.
Availability and Account Opening
Headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland, Forbright Bank has a brick-and-mortar presence in Montgomery County (Maryland) and Fairfax County (Virginia), but its CDs are available nationwide through an online application.
Forbright CDs can be opened in the following formats: sole owner, joint owners, revocable trust, and Payable On Death beneficiary(ies).
Opening a 12-17 month CD can be done online or in person at any of three Maryland branches, located in Bethesda, Potomac, and Rockville. Forbright also has a single branch in Herndon, Virginia.
Your completed application will be reviewed in 1 to 2 business days. We’ll send you an email to the email address you provide letting you know the status or if additional information is needed.
Funding and Other Details
The following information is from the Forbright Online CD FAQ page and a conversation with CSR.
- Funding – Plaid (recommended) or ACH.
- Interest – Compounded daily and credited monthly. Interest can distributed on a monthly basis, either mailed by check or sent by ACH.
- Maturing Funds – ACH.
- Beneficiaries – Unlimited, percentages can be assigned, Social Security numbers are required.
- Grace Period –10 calendar days before automatic renewal.
- Credit Check – Soft pull.
The Forbright Online CD FAQ page includes detailed “How do I?” explanations and is definitely worth reading.
Bank Overview
Forbright Bank has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 6.87% (excellent) based on June 30, 2022 data. In the past year, the Forbright has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $2.93 billion, an excellent annual growth rate of 179.53%. Please refer to our financial overview of Forbright Bank (FDIC Certificate # 57614) for more details.
Originally known as Congressional Bank, Forbright Bank will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this fall. John R. Lane, a former Colombo Bank executive and Congressman, founded the institution in 2003 with $10 million, which was raised in 38 days. In January 2016, the Bank acquired American Bank (Rockville, MD), strengthening its presence in Montgomery County and the District of Columbia. According to a BusinessWire September 2021 press release,
Congressional Bank today announced its intent to rebrand as Forbright Bank, a full-service bank, commercial lender, and asset manager committed to accelerating the transition to a more sustainable economy and driving decarbonization. Forbright launches as the need to build a more resilient, sustainable, and low-carbon economy grows increasingly urgent, which is why the Bank will dedicate half of its assets to financing the companies, investors, operators, and innovators driving this change.
Forbright Bank is currently the third largest bank headquartered in Maryland, with assets in excess of $6.4 billion and deposits of more than $5.6 billion.
How the 12-17 Month CD Compares
When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com which are available nationwide and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, no bank or credit union has a higher rate than currently offered on the Forbright Bank 12-17 month CD. The following table compares the 12-17 month CD to the two highest-rate CDs from other banks and the two highest-rate CDs from credit unions.
| APY | CD Term (Early Withdrawal Penalty) | Credit Union/Bank |
|---|---|---|
| 5.25% | 12-17 Month CD (EWP=90 days) | Forbright Bank |
| 5.20% | 12-Month CD (EWP=greater of 1% of amount withdrawn or half of maturity interest on amount withdrawn) | UmbrellaBank.com |
| 5.00% | 14-Month CD (EWP=180 days) | Synchrony Bank |
| 5.00% | 12-Month Certificate (EWP=90 days) | Bethpage Federal Credit Union |
| 5.00% | 12-17 Month CD (EWP=180 days) | Credit Human |
The 12-17 Month CD also compares quite favorable to the nationally available 18-month CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com.
| APY | CD Term (Early Withdrawal Penalty) | Credit Union/Bank |
|---|---|---|
| 5.25% | 12-17 Month CD (EWP=90 days) | Forbright Bank |
| 5.25% | 18-23 Month CD (EWP=unknown) | Credit Human |
| 5.00% | 17-Month Certificate Special Preferred Rate (EWP=180 days) | Market USA Federal Credit Union |
| 5.00% | 18-Month High Yield CD (EWP=60 days) | Ally Bank |
| 5.00% | 18-Month Certificate Special (EWP=360 days) | USALLIANCE Financial |
The above information and rates are accurate as of 3/11/2023.
To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our CD Rates Table page.
