The interest rates on Limelight CDs are competitive. They are competitive with other online CD accounts. Limelight interest rates are much higher than typical brick and mortar bank rates.
Limelight interest rates are not tiered. Any amount in the CD earns the most competitive rate offered. There is no set balance required to earn the most competitive rate.
Each of the Limelight CDs only requires $1,000 to open. There are no monthly fees. The only fees with Limelight CDs are from withdrawing money before the account reaches maturity. You can withdraw money during the grace period without a fee.
Limelight Bank is an entirely online bank. There are no branch locations. You open your account online, and everything for your account is online. Any U.S. citizen, who is 18 years or older, with an SSN or ITIN can open an account.
Limelight Bank offers limited options for personal deposit accounts. They only offer personal deposit CDs. Those CD terms include a six-month term, 12-month term, or 18-month term. Limelight Bank does not offer a savings, checking, or money market account.
Limelight customer service is not available 24/7. The most common way to reach customer service is through email. There is a phone number listed on the website. Customer service hours are not listed on the website.
Limelight Bank does not offer business accounts. The only account offered are personal deposit CDs. Those terms include a six-month, 12-month, and 18-month terms.
Limelight does not offer a checking or savings account. To fund the CDs requires the accounts to be linked to an external account. Once the account is linked to an external bank account, you can easily make transfers into and out of the CDs. Transfer money during the CD grace period or when the CD reaches maturity to avoid a fee.
The interest rates for most Connexus accounts are competitive. The CDs and checking accounts offer rates competitive with other online accounts. The HSA and money market account also offer competitive rates. These rates are higher than typical brick-and-mortar bank rates. The Connexus regular saving account does not offer rates competitive with other online accounts.
The personal deposit accounts with Connexus do not have monthly maintenance fees. There are no required amounts to keep in accounts to avoid fees. The checking, money market, and savings accounts are completely free. The HSA account has a fee and the business checking account does as well, if your balance falls below $200.
The Connexus Xtraordinary checking account offers ATM fee reimbursements. ATM transactions are free at any Connexus, CO-OP, and MoneyPass ATMs. The Xtraordinary checking allows up to $25 in ATM fee refunds. You must meet the account requirements to earn the ATM refund.
Connexus Credit Union offers a good variety of personal deposit accounts. They offer:
To open Connexus accounts, you must first become a member of the credit union. Employees of certain businesses or residents of certain cities qualify to become members. Relatives of members also qualify. You can become a member with a one-time $5 donation to the Connexus Association. Just because you apply does not mean you qualify to become a member. It can take up to three business days to hear if you receive approval.
The CDs through Connexus Credit Union all have high opening balances. Each of the CD terms requires $5,000 to open. Their CDs include 12, 24, 36, 42, or 60-month terms. The interest rates are competitive for each term length.
The Connexus money market account has tiered interest rates. To earn the most competitive rates requires an account balance of $100,000. Balances below $100,000 still earn interest, just not the most competitive rate.
The Connexus checking accounts have requirements you must meet to earn competitive rates. Those include eStatements, one direct deposit, and one online bill payment each month. You must also make a set amount of debit card transactions each month. If you meet these requirements, you earn the competitive rates. If you do not meet them, you are not charged a fee, but you do not earn the best rates.