10 Tips on Time Deposits

1 | Keeping money at home does not generate any yield. Time deposits offer a known return (interest rate) that is simple, safe and contributes to funding bank customers.

2 | Before visiting a bank, we suggest checking time deposit interest rates online or through investment banking, given the fact that, in general, electronic media tend to offer better interest rates.

3 | Generally speaking, the longer the term, the higher the rate the bank is willing to pay. If you know in advance that you will not need money for a period of more than 30 days, check the interest rates for time deposits maturing at a later date (60, 90, 180, 360 days).

4 | Time deposits with interest rates higher than the reference rates, and those featuring incentives or special rewards other than the interest rate, are not guaranteed by the Deposit Insurance Scheme.

5 | Usually, the greater the amount deposited, the higher the rate the bank is willing to pay. The minimum amount for a time deposit is usually $1000.

6 | It is worth keeping in mind that time deposits can be made in pesos or in dollars, each one of them with different interest rates.

7 | It is advisable to invest in a time deposit when you are sure that you will not need the money deposited during the specified time, because it will be frozen (i.e. not available for withdrawal) until maturity.

8 | Time deposits in pesos are capable of being offset, a feature that increases security since it prevents the transfer of money from one institution to another. When presenting an offsetable time deposit in another institution, the options available to you are either to deposit it in another account or to create a new time deposit.

9 | Before visiting an institution, compare the different interest rates for time deposit in several institutions to choose the best available offer.

10 | Specific time deposits (e.g. early withdrawal deposits, CER adjusted deposits, etc.) or those created electronically (through an ATM, Online Banking, telephone, etc.) are not capable of being offset, since it is necessary to have the physical document to submit it to the other institution.