Maybank SaveUp Account Review – Is the interest rate good?

TL;DR

• The Maybank SaveUp account offers a base interest rate of 0.25% p.a. By transacting with products with the bank, you can also earn an effective interest rate of up to 3.33% p.a. for up to S$75,000 of deposits. 
• To earn the bonus interest, you will need to credit your salary or spend on a card, but these will only allow you to earn the bonus interest rate for a month.
• You will need to invest, insure or borrow from the bank to earn the higher effective interest rate of up to 3.33% p.a. over a longer period of time. 
• The interest rate of the Maybank SaveUp Account is lower than other savings accounts which require you to fulfil several criteria, such as the UOB One and OCBC 360 accounts. 

What happened?

The interest rate on the Maybank SaveUp Savings Account was increased recently, going against some other savings accounts which have cut their promotional interest rates. 

The headline suggests that Singaporean customers can earn returns of up to 7% p.a.

Are the higher interest rates too good to be true? How do the interest rates on the Maybank SaveUp account compare to other savings accounts? Let’s find out 

What is the interest rate for the Maybank SaveUp Account? 

The Maybank SaveUp Account offers a base interest of 0.25% p.a. 

You can earn a bonus interest rate of 0.30% p.a. to 2.75% p.a. on your first S$50,000 of deposits, if you take up 1 to 3 products with the bank.

For incremental balances above S$50,000 and below S$75,000, you can earn a bonus interest rate of 1.0% p.a. to 3.75% p.a., if you take up 1 to 3 products with the bank. 

Including the base interest rates of 0.25%, you will earn an effective interest rate of 0.55% p.a. to 3.0% on your first S$50,000 of deposits, if you take up one to three products with the bank.

For deposits above S$50,000 and up to S$75,000 you will earn a maximum effective interest rate of 0.78% p.a. to 3.33% p.a., if you take up one to three products with the bank. 

How do I earn additional interest on the Maybank SaveUp Account?

The base interest rate for the Maybank Save Up Programme is relatively low, set at 0.25%. 

However, you can earn a bonus interest by taking up additional products with the bank. These products are in the categories of save, spend, invest, insure, or borrow.

If you are able to fulfill two of these product requirements, such as crediting your monthly salary and spending $500 with qualifying cards, you can earn an interest of 1.42% p.a.

However, it is worth noting that the additional bonus interest rate would be applied for different time periods. 

For example, for someone who is making a salary credit and spend with a qualifying card, the bonus interest period will only be for one month. 

Also, your SaveUp Account must be linked to a Maybank Debit Card.

You will need to invest, insure or borrow from the bank to earn the higher effective interest rate of 3.33% p.a. and over a longer period of time. 

Quite clearly, the bonus interest rate structure is designed to incentivise account holders to invest, insure and borrow from the bank.  

For the full terms and conditions, you can refer here 

How does the interest rate on Maybank SaveUp Account compare to the other savings accounts (UOB One, DBS Multiplier and OCBC 360)?

Let’s compare the interest rate on the Maybank SaveUp Account with other accounts that allow you to earn a higher interest rate by ‘jumping through hoops’.

For most of us who may not invest, insure of borrow from the bank, we may be able to just fulfil these requirements:

1. Credit  monthly salary to the bank.
2. Spend the minimum required amount using their credit cards.

We have put in these requirements into Beansprout’s Compare Savings Account tool to find out what is the effective interest rate we can earn on different savings accounts.

The OCBC 360 account offers the highest effective interest rate of 3.92% p.a. for savings of S$50,000, above the interest rate of 1.25% p.a. on the Maybank SaveUp account. 

The UOB One account offers the highest interest rate of 5.00% p.a. for savings of S$100,000, above the interest rate of 1.42% p.a. on the Maybank SaveUp account.

In addition, the bonus interest rates on the OCBC 360 account and UOB One accounts are valid until there is a revision in the interest rates, while the bonus interest rate on the Maybank SaveUp account based on the assumptions above would just be for one month. 

What is the minimum deposit required for the Maybank SaveUp account?

The initial deposit for the Maybank SaveUp account is S$500 for Singapore Citizen and Singapore Permanent Residents. 

However, you will incur a S$2 monthly balance fee if your average daily balance falls below S$1,000. 

The good news is that if you're below 25 years old, you won't have to worry about any fall-below fees associated with this account.

What is the maximum deposit for the Maybank SaveUp account?

The bonus interest rate is applicable only to the first $75,000 in your account. 

Once your account balance exceeds $75,000, the interest rate on the excess amount falls back to just 0.25% p.a.. 

However, if you are a Maybank Privilege or Premier client, you can earn a bonus interest rate on a higher level of deposits. 

For example, Maybank Privilege clients can earn a maximum effective interest rate of 3.92% p.a. on S$150,000 of deposits when they take up 4 products with the bank. 

Maybank Premier clients can earn a maximum effective interest rate of 4.53% p.a. on S$200,000 of deposits when they take up 4 products with the bank. 

How to apply for the Maybank SaveUp account?

To open a Maybank Save Up Programme, you will need to be at least 18 years old and have a minimum initial deposit of $500 for Singaporeans and Singapore PRs.

There are a few options that you can use to apply for the Maybank SaveUp Programme:

• Apply online
• Via Maybank2u SG app (for Singaporeans and Singapore Permanent Residents) 
• Visit a Maybank branch.

To speed up this whole process, you can use Singpass Myinfo when you apply online.

What would Beansprout do? 

It’s good to see that there are banks that are still raising interest rates to attract deposits. 

The Maybank SaveUp account allows you to earn a higher interest rate if you transact across numerous products with the bank.

The higher interest rate should be good news if you are already intending to take up a product with the bank, such as a home loan or car loan. 

However, the maximum effective interest rate earned would be lower than other savings accounts that require you to fulfill similar requirements, such as the UOB One or OCBC 360 accounts.