Why not put your emergency fund where it earns the most interest and have fun at the same time? Redneck Bank currently pays 2.5% for its Mega Money Market account and 3.0% for its Redneck Rewards Checkin’ account. Yes, you read that correctly, and it’s legitimate (though there are some limitations). Those rates are higher than other banks and even Schwab’s Value Advantage Money Fund ($SWVXX).
Where Bankin’s Funner
The website plays up the redneck theme “where bankin’s funner” in several ways. Animated images of a smiling donkey, a squirrel with a fishing pole (yes, it caught some money), and a goat wearing a “save yer money” hat join an animated fly and pig that appears on a home page that clearly doesn’t take itself too seriously. Click the “Online Bidness” link to display a login form decorated with an outhouse. The “Online Bankin’ Videos” and “Calculate Yer Finances” tools to help you out, but if you have trouble understanding the “redneckery,” you can follow a link to parent All America Bank to “read this in English.”
Redneck Bank is FDIC-Insured
Though the website is tongue-in-check, the good rates are backed by a legitimate bank. Redneck Bank is FDIC-insured and is the online-only division of All America Bank, which offers similar accounts and has been “serving our communities in Oklahoma since our grandfather started in banking 90 years ago.”
The Fine Print
Redneck Bank’s great interest rates have their requirements and limits:
- Both accounts:
- Require a minimum $500 to open the account
- Offer 10 free online bill pay transactions per month.
- $3 / month for paper statements, and $10 dormant account fee, otherwise no monthly charges
- Mega Money Market account
- Interest accrues at the advertised APY up to $50,000
- Interest is .5% above the limit.
- One account for a social security number. This should be sufficient for most emergency funds, but you can create another account with All America bank to effectively double the limit.
- 6 free withdrawals / month, then $5 / withdrawal. This should be an issue for emergency funds usage as long as you can transfer to your checking account.
- Redneck Rewards Checkin’ Account
- To receive the advertised rate, you must make 10 Redneck Bank VISA debit card transactions per monthly statement cycle. I prefer to optimize credit card rewards and not to use less secure debit card transactions, so this wasn’t worth an extra .5%.
- Interest accrues at the advertised APY up to $10,000.
- Interest is .5% over the limit, and .25% if the debit card transaction requirements aren’t met.
- Refunds foreign ATM fees up to $25 / month.
They Got Mobile Bankin’ Apps, Too
Not surprisingly, Redneck Bank offers functional mobile apps, though these are co-branded with parent All America Bank.
