Vibrant Credit Union (IL/IA) To Add High Interest Checking In April

Deal Summary: High Interest Checking, 2.25% APY up to $15k, available on April 1, 2017.

On April 1, Vibrant Credit Union (Vibrant CU) will be debuting five new checking accounts, including its High Interest Checking account, which earns 2.25% APY on qualifying balances up to $15k. Qualifying balances above $15k earn 0.01% APY, with non-qualifying balances not earning any interest.

Qualifying Requirements

• Direct Deposit of at least $500
• At least 12 signature debit card transactions
• Receive eStatements.

The High Interest Checking account has a $10 monthly service fee that is waived when the qualifying requirements are met. The new checking promotion page states,

Guess what? We’ll waive your fee for the first 30 days after you switch to this account.

CDs

In March 2015, I wrote the Credit Union’s (then new) 33-month CD Special, and two years later, its initial 2.00% APY is still in effect. Three years ago, DA member, pearlbrown, posted about the Credit Union’s 5-year Add-On CD and remarkably, its 2.02% APY has been maintained since that April 2015 Forum post, with the exception of a 6-week period.

As stated on the Rates page,

During the term of the Add-On certificate, you may make deposits of $5.00 or more at any time.

As stated in the Truth In Savings document, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:

If your Certificate account is withdrawn prior to maturity, you will be
charged a penalty of all interest on the entire amount of the Certificate.

Availability

Headquartered in Moline, Illinois, Vibrant Credit Union offers membership to all individuals who live within a 50-mile radius of any Quad Cities (southeastern Iowa and northwest Illinois) branch location.

Joining Vibrant CU can be done at any of the five Iowa branches located in Bettendorf, Clinton (2), Davenport, and Eldridge, or five Illinois branches located in Geneseo, East Moline, Milan, and Moline (2),

The membership application process can be initiated by using an online form, but completing the process requires an in-person branch visit.

It’s likely opening a High Interest Checking account will require a branch visit, but current members can use an online form to get a head start.

Skip the line, beat the rush, and preregister for your favorite checking option

Credit Union Overview

Vibrant Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 6.47% (excellent) based on December 31, 2016 data. In the past year, Vibrant CU has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $17.77 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 3.99%. Please refer to our financial overview of Vibrant Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 61093) for more details.

Originally chartered in 1935 for the benefit of the John Deere Harvester Works Plant employees, the Credit Union began with a modest $40 in assets.

In 2005, John Deere requested the credit union to rebrand and remove any name/affiliation with the John Deere brand. At that time we changed from Deere Harvester Credit Union to DHCU Community Credit Union (an acronym without a meaning).

In the mid-90s, the field of membership was opened to non-employees, as well as John Deere employees. Since that time, there was confusion if non-employees were eligible for DHCU membership, so the name was changed to Vibrant Credit Union in late 2015. Vibrant Credit Union is currently Illinois’ 15th largest credit union, with more than 38,700 members and with assets in excess of $581 million.

How the High Interest Checking Compares

When compared to the 65 High Yield reward checking accounts tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available within the FOM and have maximum qualifying balances of at least $15k, Vibrant Credit Union’s High Interest Checking APY currently ranks seventh.

The above rates are accurate as of 3/24/2017.

To look for the best Reward Checking Account rates, both nationwide and in your state, please refer to our High Yield Reward Checking Account rates table or our Rates Map page.