High-Yield Reward Checking Account at First National Bank in Louisiana
First National Bank is offering a reward checking and savings account under the Kasasa brand. The accounts have the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met (as of 3/3/2011):
Kasasa Cash
- 3.55% APY on balances up to $15,000
- 0.55% APY on portion of balances over $15,000
- 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
- Nationwide ATM fee refunds (up to $25 per monthly cycle)
Kasasa Saver
- 1.55% APY on balances up to $15,000
- 0.55% APY on portion of balances over $15,000
- 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
Monthly requirements for the Kasasa Cash account include:
- 12 debit card purchases
- 1 direct deposit or automatic bill payment
- Receive e-statements
To qualify for the Kasasa Saver rates, you must have the Kasasa Cash account and meet its monthly requirements. Both accounts are free of monthly service charges and have no minimum balance requirements.
Application and Availability
There's an "open now" link at the Kasasa Cash page that takes you to an online application. Update 3/3/11: The start of the application now states that you must be a resident of either Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas or Mississippi. I received confirmation from the bank today that the accounts are available nationwide. Note, it's a small bank so this policy may not last. As we've seen many times in the last couple of years, small banks offering reward checking accounts nationwide often reduce the availability of the accounts to their state or local market area.
How it Compares
Compared to other nationwide reward checking accounts, the rate is a little higher, but the balance cap is a little lower. There are still four nationwide reward checking accounts that offer 3% APY on balances up to $25K (as of 12/17/2010).
Bank Overview
It's a small bank with six branches located in north Louisiana.
The bank has an overall health score at DepositAccounts.com of 3 out of 5 with a Texas Ratio of 20.85% (above average) based on September 2010 data. Please refer to our financial overview of First National Bank for more details. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1935 (FDIC Certificate # 15059).
Thanks to the reader who emailed me news of this account.
Other High-Yield Reward Checking Accounts
To find reward checking accounts in your state or to find those available nationwide, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com.
