UFB Direct High-Yield Savings Account: Earn Competitive APY

UFB Direct just launched a savings account with a yield that puts it among the top-paying accounts available.

The new UFB High Yield Savings account pays a 2.45 percent annual percentage yield (APY), and interest is compounded daily.

The account replaces the UFB Premium Savings, which offered 1.3 percent APY and is no longer available on UFB Direct’s website.

UFB Direct, a division of Axos Bank, now has both a savings account and a money market account offering 2.45 percent APY. However, both accounts require a hefty $25,000 minimum balance to earn the yield. Balances below that threshold earn 0.5 percent APY on the money market account and 0 percent APY on the savings account.

How the APY stacks up

The UFB High Yield Savings account’s 2.45 percent APY puts it among the top-yielding savings accounts available. Customers Bank recently launched a savings account paying a slightly higher yield at 2.5 percent, but it also carries a $25,000 minimum balance requirement to earn the yield.

Vio Bank raised its savings account yield to 2.46 percent APY earlier this week, and the yield is available on all balance tiers. The account requires only a $100 minimum deposit to open. Meanwhile, Rising Bank offers a 2.45 percent APY savings account with a minimum opening deposit and balance requirement of $1,000.

One perk of the UFB Direct High Yield Savings account: A UFB Direct ATM card is available for this account. This feature isn’t always offered by the top-yielding banks.

Western State Bank is among a handful of banks offering a money market account paying 2.5 percent APY, narrowly edging out UFB Direct’s 2.45 percent APY money market account. You can compare rates on savings accounts and money markets accounts on Bankrate to find the right account for you.

Requirements, minimums and fees

The UFB High Yield Savings account doesn’t have a maintenance fee. Only balance tiers of $25,000 and higher earn the 2.45 percent APY on the UFB High Yield Savings account. All tiers under $25,000 don’t earn any interest.

In order to qualify for the 2.45 percent APY, you need to deposit new funds from a different financial institution that didn’t originate at Axos Bank or UFB Direct.

There’s an ATM card replacement fee of $5 for the second occurrence and any ATM card replacement after that. UFB doesn’t charge for ATM withdrawals but won’t reimburse any non-UFB bank ATM fees.