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Financial Rates:
4.5
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Customer Service:
4.0
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Website Experience:
4.0
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Bank Fees:
5.0
Pros:
- Competitive interest rates on accounts
- Some business accounts offered
- No minimum balance or monthly fees
- Earn high interest on any amount
Cons:
- Only savings account and CDs offered
- Linked external accounts required
- CDs have large opening required amounts
- No checks or debit card offered
What You Need to Know
The interest rates of Live Oak Bank accounts are competitive. They are much higher than your typical brick and mortar bank rates. Account rates are competitive with other online-only accounts.
Live Oak Bank offers a few business accounts. They offer a savings account and CDs. There are seven CD terms offered for small business accounts. The terms range from six months to a five-year CD. The longer the CD term, the higher the interest rate offered.
There is no required amount to keep in a Live Oak savings account. There is no monthly fee. If your account gets to $10.01 and is inactivated for 24 consecutive months, you will be charged a fee. Live Oak Bank will then close the account. If you make more than six withdrawals per month, you will be charged $10 for each transaction.
Live Oak Bank savings account and CDs offer competitive interest rates. You earn the highest interest rates on any amount deposited in the accounts. There is no set balance required to earn the highest interest rates offered.
The only accounts offered are a savings account and CDs. These are the only accounts offered for personal banking, as well as business banking. There are seven different CD terms available. The terms range from six-months to five-years.
To open a Live Oak Bank, you must link an external checking account. Live Oak Bank does not offer a checking account. To make electronic transfers requires a linked checking account.
Live Oak Bank CDs have a large opening amount for each term. The opening amount required is $2,500 for each CD term. The different CD terms range from a six-month term to a five-year term.
There are no checks or debit cards available for Live Oak Bank accounts. The only way to access your money is to make an electronic transfer. Once you make the transfer online, the money will be available within one to two business days. Anything transferred after 4:00 p.m. is processed the next business day. Federal regulations only allow for six withdrawals each billing cycle.
Cool Things
Live Oak Learning Lab
During the summer, Live Oak Bank hosts industry-specific programs. Students learn more about the business side with real-life applications. Some of the topics include basic finance, marketing strategies, and networking. View the sessions through Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Live Oak Bank currently offers the Learning Labs for veterinary and pharmacy industries.
Resource Center
Live Oak Bank has a resource center on their website. This offers financial articles to customers and small business owners. These articles help people find answers to different financial questions. There are resources for senior care and automotive care. Banking resource and self-storage resources are available.
History
Live Oak Bank is a digital bank founded in 2008. The headquarters for the company are in Wilmington, North Carolina. They have over 6,000 small business loans.
Live Oak was originally founded as a lender focused mainly on veterinary practices. Since it opened, they have added agriculture, pharmacy, healthcare, and other industries. Each time they add a new industry, they add an expert to lead the team with their knowledge of that area.
They have spent their focus on small businesses loans. Their savings account and CD terms have been added. Their total deposit amount is $2.3 billion.
Awards and Recognition
- Named "One of the Nation's Best Choices for Online Savings Account" in 2018, by BankRate.com
- "Best Bank to Work For" by American Banker Magazine in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017
Giving Back
In 2017, Live Oak Bank employees volunteered over 4,700 hours in service. They awarded 32 grants and 46 different organizations received funds. There were 20 different events sponsored throughout the year. More than 70 percent of the money was given to human services. The rest of the money went to organizations helping with health and education. The bulk of the money was given locally, with only 13 percent not given to local organizations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Live Oak Bank is FDIC insured. The FDIC is an agency of the United States government that protects funds deposited in banks, up to $250,000 per customer, per bank. The money deposited in FDIC insured banks means money is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government.
Electronically transfer money to your linked external account. You can also transfer money between your different Live Oak Bank accounts.
Yes. With the Live Oak Bank mobile app, you can manage accounts and deposit checks. You can transfer funds between other Live Oak accounts and linked accounts.
The interest rates are competitive with other online-only accounts. There are no monthly maintenance fees for any of their accounts. Everything for your account is online. The only branch location is their headquarters in North Carolina. Only a savings account and CDs are available through Live Oak Bank.
Yes. There are no monthly maintenance fees for the Live Oak savings account. The CDs only have a fee if you withdraw your money before the term reaches maturity.
Live Oak Bank uses anti-virus and anti-malware tools to protect suspicious activity. They have firewalls in place and SSL encryption. They require multi-factor authentication for your security.
Yes. The interest rates for all Live Oak Bank accounts are competitive. Their rates are much higher than your typical brick and mortar bank rates. The rates are competitive with other online-only accounts.
Live Oak Bank offers a savings account and CDs for small businesses. They also offer loans to small businesses.
The interest rates on Live Oak Bank accounts are much higher than your typical brick and mortar bank rates. Everything for your account is online. The only branch location is their headquarters in North Carolina.
Live Oak Bank does not offer a checking account. The only accounts offered are a savings account and CDs.
By phone, email, mail, or fax.
Live Oak Bank does not offer a checking account. Since no checking accounts are available, there is no bill pay option offered.
No. Live Oak Bank does not accept cash deposits. Deposits can be made by electronic transfers between accounts. You can mail a check or upload a check through the app.
Mobile check deposits made after 4 p.m. are processed the next business day. Money deposited through the app must stay in the account for four business days. Other deposits must stay for five business days.
Transfer money electronically from your linked account to Live Oak Bank savings account. Direct deposit is not specifically listed on the website.
Bank Contact Information
Live Oak Bank1741 Tiburon Dr
Wilmington, NC 28403
1-866-518-0286
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| Savings (Rate as of 12/21/2024) | |
| APY | 3.80% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 3.73% |
| Min to Open | $0 |
| Min to Earn APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Min to Avoid Fee | $0 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC. | |
| Savings (Rate as of 12/21/2024) | |
| APY | 3.80% |
|---|---|
| Rate | 3.80% |
| Min to Open | $0 |
| Min to Earn APY | $0 |
| Monthly Fee | $0.00 |
| Min to Avoid Fee | $0 |
| Checkbook | No |
| Member FDIC. Promoted offer: It only takes about 5 minutes to open a fee-free account. |
|
The rate information is obtained by Bankrate from the listed institutions. Bankrate cannot guarantee the accuracy or availability of any rates shown. Institutions may have different rates on their own websites than those posted on Bankrate.com. The listings that appear on this page are from companies from which this website receives compensation, which may impact how, where, and in what order products appear. This table does not include all companies or all available products.
All rates are subject to change without notice and may vary depending on location. These quotes are from banks, thrifts, and credit unions, some of whom have paid for a link to their own website where you can find additional information. Those with a paid link are our Advertisers. Those without a paid link are listings we obtain to improve the consumer shopping experience and are not Advertisers. To receive the Bankrate.com rate from an Advertiser, please identify yourself as a Bankrate customer. Bank and thrift deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Credit union deposits are insured by the National Credit Union Administration.
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1 APY stands for Annual Percent Yield. It's different from Rate because it takes into account compounding interest for the year.
2 MMA stands for Money Market Account. It's a savings and checking hybrid, allowing you to earn interest and use checks 6 times a month.