Best Online Banks 2013

In this article we shall review some of the best online banks 2013 has in store for Internet savvy users. With the Internet at such an advanced stage, almost every other thing is going online and it makes sense, therefore, for bankers to allow people complete control of their finances over the Internet. The convenience of round-the-clock banking from anywhere is too hard to ignore. Online banks have vastly different packages but the most important ones include: loans, savings, checking, and other value addition services. The following are some of the best online only banks 2013 has to offer.

List of Top Ten Best Online Banks 2013

Flagstar

High on the list of best online banking 2013 products, Flagstar has many advantages that it avails to consumers. One of the benefits of using this online only bank is that there is no minimum balance for saving. The bank imposes a $1 minimum as far as deposits are concerned which is hardly a limitation. You get a full set of loan options and there are many accounts and financial tools available to consumers. Money saved at Flagstar of course earns interest just like it would in any conventional banks. This is one of the most highly rated online only banks with an all-round banking experience. The only bad thing with the bank is that the overdraft fees are among the highest anywhere.

USAA

Being a Fortune 500 company, USAA’s online banking services are expected to be top of the range. As expected, the company does not disappoint in any areas including savings, checking, loans, and a barrage of other features. The bank is for personal banking only so this could be a setback for businessmen. After May of 2013, the bank only serves military personnel, either current or past and their families. The only exception is people who already had accounts beforehand even if they have never been in the military.

CapitalOne 360

This online only bank offers both checking and savings accounts. To add to the sweetness, the bank also provides loans to its customers. The bank likes to identify with the catch phrase ‘National Bank of Wherever’ due to its round-the-clock availability and accessibility from any location. CapitalOne is a name that was first heard in 2013 but the company it once was, ING Direct, has been around since the year 2000. The bank has no minimum deposit or balance whether you hold a savings or checking account. Loans provided by the bank can only be home equity loans or mortgages. There is a $1 million maximum limit for savings account and the bank has no money markets account.

Ally

This online bank offers a complete banking package. The bank also provides money market accounts, CDs, and IRAs. No minimum balances are required and accounts have no minimum deposits. What’s more, the bank has no upper limit for the amount of money you can deposit. The bank has some of the best retirement accounts. You can pick an account that allows tax-deferred growth or one where you pay tax upfront and get tax-free funds upon retirement. The disadvantage with this bank is that it doesn’t offer mortgages, personal loans, or educational savings plans.

EverBank

This online bank has all types of accounts a person could want including checking and savings accounts. You can also open accounts for trading in foreign currencies and precious metals. In terms of interest, the bank promises to keep its interest rates higher than the top five banks as rated by bankrate.com. There is a minimum deposit when you open this account and it is set at $1,500. However, there is no minimum balance after that. This initial deposit is the highest one among the ten banks listed in this article.

Bank of Internet USA

Before we start with this bank, it is important to note that it offers high interest rate on deposits. Most competing banks do not offer higher interest rates than Bank of Internet USA making it an online bank of choice for people with large sums of money in savings. The bank has personal and corporate CDs as well as money market accounts. However, it lacks retirement accounts and educational savings plans. A minimum deposit of $100 is imposed when opening an account. Deposits have no upper limit.

iGObanking

This online bank has many tools that allow users full control of their money. Accounts available at iGObanking include: savings, checking, CDs, IRAs, and forex accounts. The bank can be accessed from anywhere as long as you have an Internet connection and web browsing device. No minimum balance for any account is required and you also don’t have to worry about minimum deposits with accounts held at iGObanking. The bank’s disadvantages are that it offers no loans, no educational savings account, no overdraft protection on checks, and highest overdraft fee compared to others on this list.

AmericaNet Bank

This bank is definitely on the best online savings banks 2013 list. What puts it on this list is that has no fees for checking accounts and a low (almost non-existent) minimum deposit of $1. The account has a money markets account with a good interest rate. However, whatever interest rate you were given during account opening a money markets account is halved the moment your account balance goes above $35,000. On the negative side, the bank offers no loans whatsoever. It also doesn’t have retirement accounts or CDs.

FNBO Direct

If you are looking for an online only bank with CDs, savings, and educational savings account, FNBO Direct is probably a good choice. Accounts held at the bank earn interest on deposits. The interest rate is higher than many conventional banks. A minimum deposit of a dollar is required to open a savings account and there is no minimum balance. This is the only bank on the list that offers no checking account. You should also not expect any loans from this bank and maximum deposit amount is one million dollars.

GoBank

On your quest for the best bank online banking should be an option to seriously consider. The bank is intended only for mobile access. It is simply a money vault that is linked with a checking account and offers no interest on savings. GoBank was started by a company that used to issue pre-paid cards. The company, Green Dot Financial Corp, decided to start a beta version of the online bank in 2013 to test the product and gain customers. After the test it may or may not become a fully-fledged online bank with (hopefully) many more products.

The best online banks 2013 mentioned above have different combinations of banking services. Loans are amongst the most sought after services for any banks but not all the banks mentioned offer them. Most of the banks offer savings accounts with varying interest rates so if you are looking to make money off of your savings, it is best to choose the account with the highest rates. Checking accounts are also fairly common with the banks with varying conditions. One of the important considerations before choosing a bank is whether it has FDIC backing. This means that the government guarantees to pay you up to $250,000 if the bank goes under.