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Capital One is offering $50 bonus for opening a new savings account online and make $10,000 deposit. This is a great opportunity to earn extra money if you are seeking for a savings account now. If there is a Capital One branch near you, you can get a debit card from Capital One and join the SmartCents Program which is a similar program as the Keep the Change at Bank of America.

The promotion page about this $50 bonus is here. In order to get the bonus, you have to keep the following points in mind:

• Offer code is SAVER50DF
• Savings account must be opened online by 11/25/2009
• You have to be new to Capital One Direct Banking
• At least $10,000 must be on deposit on 11/25/2009 to Get the Bonus

One KEY FEATURE of  this account is absolutely NO FEE! Service and maintenance fees don’t apply for this account!

The SmartCents program of the Capital One Savings Account has some features:

• Every time you make a debit card purchase or pay a bill online, 50 cents of your money is transferred from your checking to your savings and Capital One matches 100% of your eligible SmartCents transfers made within the first 3 months, and 5% after that (there is $300 yearly cap).
• Get $15 for your first direct deposit plus an extra $15 for your first online bill payment (total $30)
• You need to have a checking account to work with a savings account to be eligible to join this program

Compass Bank is offering $150 bonus for opening a new checking account and savings account together. The $150 bonus seems not difficult to get. The first $75 bonus is from checking account with required online bill pay activities. Or you can sign up direct deposit with your new checking account. The second $75 bonus is from savings account with automatic transfer from your checking account with minimum $50 per month.

The promotion page can be found here. Following are some important points to get the $150 bonus.

• Open a new Compass checking account （Build-to-Order Free Checking account）and sign up for Online Bill Pay by 2/28/09
• Pay at least 5 bills online every 30 days for the first three months your account is open
• For each month that you do, you’ll get $25 — up to $75 total

Open a new Compass checking account from January 5, 2009 to 02/28/09 and pay at least 5 bills via CompassPC Online Bill Pay every 30 days for the first 90 days your account is open, and receive $25 for each qualifying period up to $75.　Online bill payments must be made to a third party and be at least $25.00 in order to be eligible.

The other way to make $75 bonus from Compass Bank is sign up for direct deposit with your employer’s payroll and you can get $75 bonus! It’s very easy! Minimum $100 opening deposit required. Account opened between 01/05/2009 and 02/28/2009 that establish a recurring payroll direct deposit within the month following the account open date will receive $75.

The second savings account seems also sweet!

• Open a new Compass checking account by February 28, 2009
• Set up automatic transfers of at least $50 a month from your new checking to a savings or money market account
• After the third transfer, we’ll credit your account an extra $75

To take advantage of the sign up bonus opportunity, you can visit Compass Bank local branches, call 1-800-COMPASS (1-800-266-7277) or you can apply online here.

WT Direct is offering a new winter promotion now. This promotion is similar to the one I mentioned in August 2008 from which you can get about $50 to $250 new account bonus depending on your account balance. The WT Direct Online Savings Account is on the list of my Top 7 Online Banks for High Interest Savings.

The promotion page can be found here. It’s very simple to get the bonus, here is how:

• OPEN a new account — use promotion code “WTG3DNC”
• LINK an existing bank account to your new WTDirect account during the application process.
• FUND your new WTDirect account by initiating an online transfer by 12/22/08.
• EARN your bonus — calculated by determining the average balance from 1/1/09 – 2/28/09.
  During that time, you will have 100% access to your funds.
• RECEIVE your cash bonus in mid-March. It will be deposited directly to your WTDirect account.

Following is the bonus level which determines how much you can get:

• $250 bonus for $50,000 balance
• $200 bonus for $40,000 balance
• $150 bonus for $30,000 balance
• $100 bonus for $20,000 balance
• $50 bonus for $10,000 balance

Fine Print:

This offer is available to new WTDirect clients only. To receive the bonus, clients must enter the promotion code “WTG3DNC” at the time of account opening. There is no minimum balance required to open the account. WTDirect account must be funded via electronic (ACH) transfer which must be initiated by 12/22/08. Clients may transfer funds in and out of the WTDirect account during the promotion period (1/1/09 – 2/28/09) and the bonus will be based on the average balance level during that time.

If you have a large fund, it’s a good time to catch the deal. For balance over $10,000, you can enjoy 3.06% APY which is relatively high rate under current banking environment. If your balance is under $10,00o your rate will be not high, so this is not a long term account choice for those with less than $10,000 money.

There is no hard pull during the account open process. All the accounts at WT Direct is insured by FDIC with a limit of $250,000.

I subscribe to many personal finance magazines like Money, Smartmoney, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and Forbes. Reading articles from above magazines usually give ideas on what to write about at mycardblog.com. Usually the articles are written by experts on personal finance and are highly recommended to everyone. They cover all the aspects in your daily life in terms of personal finance: credit cards, banking accounts, mortgages, auto loans, investments, stocks, and even retirements.

In the November’s Kipling’s Personal Finance, they voted the best Savings, Checking and Money Market Account in 2008. I think it is important to let everyone know what the experts’ best banking accounts. Kiplinger’s Personal Finance usually publishes its annual list of what it considers the best items related to personal finance, such as best credit card, best savings account, and best retirement tool.

Following are Kiplinger’s 2008 picks for excellence in savings and checking accounts:

Online Savings Account: FNBO Direct. Earn 3.5% APY on the FDIC-insured savings account at www.fnbodirect.com. The savings account at FNBO features with no maintenance fees and no minimum-balance requirement plus minimum $1 to open. You can also link your FNBO account to other banking accounts.

Money-Market Account: Express Money Market, Flagstar Bank. You can earn 3.65% APY from the FDIC-insured money market account. Flagstar Bank also provides free checks and a free visa debit card which allows you to easily access your fund at money market account. You can also get free, unlimited ATM withdrawals through the Allpoint and Presto networks

Checking Account: Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Checking. This is a highly recommended checking account. You don’t have to be a Schwab customer to apply for this account. You can apply online at www.schwab.com. Earn 1.50% variable APY in an FDIC-insured checking account—plus no ATM fees, no minimums, and no monthly service charges. The Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Checking is highly recommended!

Money Market Mutual Fund: Fidelity Cash Reserves. The Fidelity Reserves is the safest mutual fund in the market. However, we should admit that the yields are low in the current market. If you want to put your cash is a safe place during the financial crisis, Fidelity is a top choice. Fidelity has signed up for the new government insurance program. Minimum investment is $2,500, and check-writing is available.

I really should have included the FNBO direct online savings account into my Top 7 Online Banks for High Interest Savings. The full report of the 2008 best list can be found at Kiplinger.com.

About Kiplinger’s Personal Finance: It is a magazine that has been continuously published, on a monthly basis, from 1947 to the present day. It was the nation’s first personal finance magazine, and prides itself on delivering “sound, unbiased advice in clear, concise language”. It offers tips and tricks on managing money and achieving financial security, as well as information and practical guidance on saving, investing, planning for retirement, paying for college, and buying automobiles, homes and other major purchases.

Everyone is very familiar with eBay, the largest online auction and shopping website. You choose the products you want at eBay and bid for them. If you pay the highest price, you will win the bidding and the products will be shipped to you. Now, the new website MoneyAisle.com promises similar benefits to people looking for the best interest rates for their long- or short-term savings or CDs.

The philosophy behind the moneyaisle.com is very simple. They attract more than 100 banks from all over the country and set up the automatic bidding system according to the operation requirements of each bank. And then all of the banks will wait for the money appears and bid to offer a better, higher rate for consumers.

Sounded very interesting, so I tried it out. At the first step, I tell the bidder how much money I have—$100,000. And then tell them my zip code and then the bidding started automatically. All you have to do is waiting before the computer and wait for the winning bidder comes out. After several rounds of bidding, only one bank left and offered a rate of 3.8% APY. It seems that all of the bidding banks are FDIC insured. There is nothing to worry about if my fund is under $100,000.

The only question remained is whether the rate is the best. So I went to visit the bankrate.com to find out the highest rate available for $100,000. Guess what? The highest interest rate I can get for the $100,000 is 3.5% APY. So it seems that the MoneyAisle could really bring higher rate for me.

The MoneyAisle is based on the automated software engine was developed by neoSaej, the company in Burlington, Mass. Each bank can adjust this software, based on goals or market conditions or their own operation rules. A hundred banks may bid in the first round, 70 in the second round, 30 in the third, until the bank with the highest offer wins the auction. If two banks offer the same final rate, the software randomly picks a winner. The winning bank pays a fee to neoSaej only if it acquires the customer.

The business model of MoneyAisle lets me think of the lendingtree.com, the other website that offer bidding system for mortgage and loan companies to offer customers the lowest rate.

If you are on the market shopping for a better rate, you can try to use the MoneyAisle. It’s free right now.

About 10 million U.S. households save online and more are going to open online savings accounts, money market accounts or CDs. According to Celent, a market-research firm, about 23 million U.S. households will have an onine accounts by 2010.To attract more customers, online banks usually pay higher interest rates on savings accounts, money market accounts, or CDs. Another feature is online banks always run great promotions to lure new customers.

WT Direct, the online branch of  Wilmington Trust FSB, is offering up to $250 bonus for depositing a certain amount of money to its high yield savings account for 60 days.

If you open a new high yield savings account by September 5, 2008, you will receive:

• $100 if your balance is between $10,000-$14,999
• $150 if your balance is between $15,000-$19,999
• $200 if your balance is between $20,000-$24,999
• $250 if your balance is $25,000+

This offer is available to new WT Direct clients only, through 9/5/08. To get the bonus, you have to enter the promotion code: WTF3SOB at the time of account opening. There is no minimum balance required to open the account. Account must remain open and in good standing and balance level cannot decrease from initial funding balance for 60 days to receive bonus. Bonus will be credited to client’s WT Direct account during the first week of November.

The current APY is 3.31% which is relatively high compared to other online banks. But after the first 60 days, the APY for the account will have two tiers: (a) a higher APY for accounts with balances of $10,000 or more (variable and currently 3.31% APY); and (b) a lower APY for accounts with balances of less than $10,000 (variable and currently 0.50% APY).

I personally think this is a great deal to catch. The promotion page can be found here.

Other high rate savings account are:

• HSBC Direct Online Savings Account 3.50% APY
  No fees and no minimums, FDIC insured
• Capital One Direct Banking 3.00% APY
  No fees and no minimums, FDIC insured
• E*TRADE Bank Complete Savings Account 3.30% APY
  No account fees and no minimums, FDIC insured
• Washington Mutual (WaMu) Free Checking 3.75% APY
  Free Checks, Free ATM Cash Withdraws
  Minimum balance to open is $1, FDIC insured
• ING Direct Electric Orange Checking Account Up to 3.40% APY
  No fees and no minimums, FDIC insured
• ING Direct Orange Savings Account 3.00% APY
• No fees and no minimums, FDIC insured

E*Trade is some kind of new to regular banking customers. Because the major business of E*Trade is online discount stock brokerage service. The investors of E*trade can buy and sell securities such as stocks, bonds, options, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds via electronic trading platforms or by phone. But actually E*Trade is also a big online banking service provider. The company also offers banking and lending products such as checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit (CD), and credit cards. The most popular banking service is the complete savings account which offers great interest rate and sign-up bonus.

E*Trade has brought back the $25 sign-up bonus for its complete savings account customers. This $25 is very easy to get. All you have to do is open a complete savings account through this promotion page with minimum $1 deposit. According to the promotion page, the $25 will be credited to your Complete Savings Account within 30 days of the account. This promotion is good through August 31, 2008. There is no hard pull during the account opening process. All they want to do is to verify your identity.

Another good reason to open the complete savings account at E*Trade is to enjoy the high interest rate from E*Trade. Current rate is 3.30% APY. Compared to the national average interest nowadays, this rate is really competing. For example, the rate of Orange Savings Account from ING is 3.00% and Capital One is offering 2.50% for its Online Savings Account. Plus this complete savings account features no minimum balance requirement and no monthly fees.

Another feature I want to point out is the money transfer between E*Trade and other financial institutes are really quick with their QUICK TRANSFER service.

The banking products and services are offered by E*Trade Bank. The E*Trade bank is a FDIC insured bank which means bank deposits are FDIC insured to at least $100,000. E*Trade Bank is rated as the “Best of the Breed” by Money Magazine in August 2007.

This idea comes from the interesting story about a California man who has been indicted for an inventive scheme that allegedly siphoned $50,000 from online brokerage houses E-trade and Schwab.com in six months, yes, a few pennies at a time.

We all know that some online savings accounts and brokerage accounts will deposit a certain small amount of money when a customer links his/her online savings accounts and brokerage accounts to another bank account to verify the routine and account information. You have to enter the amount, which is typically from $0.02 to $1.00, from your online savings and brokerage account to claim that the account belongs to you.

However, the California man, Michael Largent, used an automated script to open around 58,000 online brokerage accounts and accumulated thousands of dollars in about 6 months. He also used the same way with Google’s Checkout and accumulated $8,225.29 in eight different bank accounts. (According to www.wired.com.)

It seems that this is a way to get you rich? Actually, “trial deposit” appears to be a standard way to verify your account information and most banks or brokerage services will not withdraw that money. So, the more you have bank/brokerage accounts, the larger the amount of trial deposits you can collect!

How much can you make if you try this in a crazy way?

Let’s assume that you can link unlimited accounts to every account you have, and each trial deposit is around $0.5 which is a typically number. Of course, we should also assume that every account uses trial deposit to verify your account information. In this way, if you have n accounts and you want to link them together with each other, you might need n*(n-1) deposits! The actual money you can earn is $0.5*n*(n-1).

Here is the result:

10 accounts—$45.00

20 accounts—$190.00

30 accounts—$435.00

50 accounts—$1225.00

100 accounts—$4950.00

200 accounts—$19900.00

500 accounts—$124750.00

1000 accounts—$499500.00

You can imagine how much you can make if you can open unlimited accounts and link them with each other. Please don’t take this seriously.