Well, it’s been about a year since I opened my FNBO Direct account. Although I was initially apprehensive about FNBO Direct, I am happy to say that I have now come to trust FNBO and can recommend their online savings account to others.

My initial concern stemmed from an e-mail I received soon after I opened my account. That e-mail stated I needed to verify some personal information or risk my account being closed. That e-mail was followed-up with second one stating the first was in error, however the ding to my confidence in their operations had already been done.

Since that incident, there have been no more goof-ups and their operations as a whole have been quite good. That’s good news, because there are serveral things I like about their online savings account, including:

• One of the highest rates on the market. At the time of this writing, FNBO is paying 3.5o% APY on their online savings account. That rate is a full 1/2 point higher that ING Direct’s current rate of 3.00% APY and 3/4 point higher than Emigrant Direct’s. I would have received much less than the $762.28 in interest last year had I parked my money with someone else.
• Competent customer service. Every time I’ve called in with a question, the people that answer the phone actually understand my question and answer it. This is refreshing, as these days most customer service is handled by low-paid overseas workers who have trouble speaking English and only know how to read from a script.
• Externally-initiated ACH transfers. I pay some bills electronically via an automated ACH withdrawal of my FNBO account. Many other online savings accounts only let you withdraw money via their account’s website, and not externally by a third-party.
• No minimums. Okay, well that’s not entirely true — you do need $1 to open the account, but after that, there’s no minimum balance or junk maintenance fees.
• ATM card. An ATM card is a good thing to have just in case you need to access your funds in an emergency. There is a $1,000 a day limit though on withdrawals via an ATM.

There is one remaining nuisance, and that is that FNBO is still persnickety with verifying ownership of external accounts. When you set up links from FNBO to your checking, brokerage, other other savings accounts, don’t be surprised if you get a call from them asking you to verify your ownership. To do that, you will need to fax them the first page of your statement from the linked account.

I wish there were a less obtrusive way for FNBO Direct to comply with the Patriot Act, but given that linking an account is a one-time deal, I’m willing to jump through the extra hoop for the higher interest rate FNBO offers.

Popularity: 50% [?]