EBSB Direct VS Live Oak Bank

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 2.5 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 3.5 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • High interest rates on accounts
  • CDs have low opening required amounts
  • Accounts are entirely online
  • Debit card offered for MMA

Cons:

  • Limited deposit accounts offered
  • Highest rates require a large amount
  • MMA has a fee and high opening amount
  • Must link to another account
  • Financial Rates: 4.5 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
4.40%APY
Savings/MMA
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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
EBSB Direct Review

The EBSB Direct accounts offer good interest rates. The rates are slightly lower than other online-only accounts. They are higher than your typical brick-and-mortar bank rates.

The EBSB Direct accounts have low opening required amounts. The 15-month CD only requires $1,000 to open. The six-month CD and the money market account both require $2,500 to open.

EBSB Direct accounts are entirely online accounts. You apply for the accounts online, not at a branch location. You can make transactions for your EBSB Direct accounts at an EBSB branch location. Everything for your EBSB Direct accounts are online.

The money market account with EBSB Direct offers a debit card for you to access your money. Federal regulations allow six withdrawals per month from the money market account. There is a fee if you withdraw more than six times.

EBSB Direct only offers a money market account and two personal CD terms. The term lengths are six-months and 15-months. There are no other personal or business accounts available.

To earn the highest interest rate offered on the MMA, you must have at least $10,000 in the account. Balances from $10 to $9,999 earn interest, but a lower rate. The highest interest rate requires at least $10,000.

The money market account has a monthly fee of $8. Waive the fee by keeping at least $2,500 in the account. That is also the amount required to open the MMA. Keeping $2,500 in the account waives the fee and earns the lower interest rate.

To make electronic transfers, link your EBSB Direct accounts to an external account. You can link the accounts to another financial institution in the United States. More than one account can be linked to your EBSB Direct account.

Read the full EBSB Direct review.

Live Oak Bank Review

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.

Read the full Live Oak Bank review.

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