People Put Nearly $1 Billion Into Apple Savings Accounts in First 4 Days (gizmodo.com) 38
Apple has learned from enough games of Monopoly that it's good to be the banker as well as a player. From a report: A Monday report from Forbes based on anonymous internal sources claims users deposited close to $1 billion in just four days after Apple introduced its new Goldman Sachs-backed Apple Card savings account. While the company had previously seen success with its mobile payments platform, the new savings account is already doing gangbusters. After the Cupertino tech giant launched its new high yield savings account last month, the company saw $990 million in deposits in less than a week, per Forbes' sources. In that time, 240,000 accounts signed up for the service. New savings accounts cannot exceed $250,000 per the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's insurance limits. If the Forbes reporting is true, then users are depositing several thousand dollars into their new accounts, on average.
That's not how the FDIC works (Score:5, Informative)
New savings accounts cannot exceed $250,000 per the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's insurance limits.
The insurance limit doesn't limit the account size, just how much is insured.
Re:That's not how the FDIC works (Score:5, Informative)
It's not how the FDIC works, but it is how the people behind the accounts implemented it.
"The maximum balance for your Account is $250,000. We will include any funds deposited into your Account but not interest or Daily Cash you’ve earned when determining the maximum balance limit. We may reject and return any funds transfer if your Account exceeds the maximum deposit limit. You authorize us to return any funds that exceed the maximum balance limit by check."
So if you get over $250,000, they'll block deposits, or, if not possible, send you a check for the excess.
Re: (Score:2)
But that's entirely their (weird) choice, and not at all the FDIC's.
Re: That's not how the FDIC works (Score:1)
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Their weird choice is related to the way the FDIC works. The fact that it's optional isn't relevant here. Cause and effect are still in play.
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It's not how the FDIC works, but it is how the people behind the accounts implemented it.
"The maximum balance for your Account is $250,000. We will include any funds deposited into your Account but not interest or Daily Cash you’ve earned when determining the maximum balance limit. We may reject and return any funds transfer if your Account exceeds the maximum deposit limit. You authorize us to return any funds that exceed the maximum balance limit by check."
So if you get over $250,000, they'll block deposits, or, if not possible, send you a check for the excess.
You can always open up more than one account
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Account is tied to your Apple Card. You're not going to open more than one of these accounts with GS.
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They aren't doing it because of FDIC though. They are buying customers with a very attractive interest rate, and don't want people to take advantage of it with massive deposits.
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MAXIMUM DEPOSIT LIMITS
The maximum balance for your Account is $250,000. We will include any funds deposited into your Account but not interest or Daily Cash you’ve earned when determining the maximum balance limit. We may reject and return any funds transfer if your Account exceeds the maximum deposit limit. You authorize us to return any funds that exceed the maximum balance limit by check.
https://www.goldmansachs.com/terms-and-conditions/Deposits-Account-Agreement.pdf
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That's a fascinating document and you'd have to be a complete idiot to agree to it, although we're talking about Apple users. Gems include:
access to your Account is available only through Apple Wallet or settings on your Eligible Device. If you delete
Apple Wallet from your Eligible Device, we will not close your Account
Leave Apple? Lose your funds.
We reserve the right to require you to notify us in writing seven days before a withdrawal is made from your Account.
Want to use "your" money? That will require a written letter.
We are not responsible for any unauthorized access that occurs as a result of your use of third-party electronic communication channels.
Phone gets hacked? Say goodbye to your money.
The agreement also places restrictions on how you can withdraw money. As far as I can tell, the only way to withdraw money is to move it onto an "Apple Cash" account. (You know, after sending them a letter a week before.) Except:
We are not required to accept or execute any Apple Cash Transfer instruction.
The agree
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"Leave Apple? Lose your funds."
We're talking of hardcore iFans, they give it billions, they won't ever leave.
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We're talking of hardcore iFans, they give it billions, they won't ever leave.
People like you talk about Apple more than actual fans of Apple do.
Re: That's not how the FDIC works (Score:4, Funny)
Damn dude. If "making assumptions" were an Olympic medal sport, you would be a gold medal champion!
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Geeez... Who do they think they are? Paypal?
Re: That's not how the FDIC works (Score:1)
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Have you never read ANY bank's user agreement???
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Most of that is true of any bank account with any bank. The bit about not being able to access it except via the wallet app is not normal though, and while that is the contractual minimum they guarantee (as in "if you get rid of your iPhone and decline to buy or borrow another and reestablish a wallet connection with your account we might not work with you to get your money back and may tell you to go pound sand") Apple tends to go above and beyond, if in part only because they dislike bad press and they g
Re: That's not how the FDIC works (Score:2)
But it IS how the policy on this account works.
They can limit max account balance to anything they like - and they do.
And nobody wonders why Apple does this? (Score:2)
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Re: And nobody wonders why Apple does this? (Score:2)
it's not apple (Score:2, Interesting)
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It's a Goldman Sachs savings account with an Apple app. Why are they doing it? Because Goldman wants deposits for some reason. Why doesn't Goldman want money over $250k? Because large depositors panic and pull out their money all at once and they don't want panicky deposits.
$250K limit is the FDIC limit. You can always open more accounts, but each one is capped at $250K.
I doubt this cap is going to be a problem for you
Re: it's not apple (Score:3)
Account is tied to your Apple Card. You're not going to open more than one of these accounts.
Re: it's not apple (Score:3)
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The $250K cap is the amount insured by the FDIC should Goldman fail. Goldman is artificially keeping the deposit cap at the FDIC insured amount to prevent withdraw runs as the AC noted above. Runs on money is why Silicon V, First R and Signature failed.
And we used to laugh... (Score:5, Interesting)
When I run it's an iPod,
talk, it's an iPhone,
stuff I gotta have no matter what, it's an iLoan
That used to be funny [youtube.com]...
Apple and the riches love (Score:2)
Congrats to Goldman Sachs, (Score:3)
they've got themselves a new vehicle to collect other people's money, which they can invest into the next subprime AND offload the risks to the government, while keeping the profits.
Financial "innovation" at its finest, as usual from GS.
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Federal Deposit Insurance IS PAID FOR BY BANKS. it's not free insurance. If too much goes wrong all over then the insurance goes bust and the gov gets involved more because stuff is pretty bad at that point...
Also, the banks have too much power so if they are are going to gamble MORE they should pay more insurance but this is not the case.
It's not a bad deal .... I signed up... (Score:2)
The truth is, Goldman Sachs isn't really doing anything here that's unique. There are, in fact, a couple of other lenders with high-yield savings accounts offering even higher interest rates than this Apple one. For example, Bask Bank offers 4.75% right now:
https://www.baskbank.com/produ... [baskbank.com]
But for those of us already buying things with Apple Pay, this makes a convenient "piggy bank" to collect up spare change. The "daily cash back" bonus payments of a few cents or tens of cents with each purchase that used
Check your rates! (Score:2)
I just set up Apple Savings, for my daily cash back. No fuss, no muss, done.
I was about to transfer money out of my Credit Union account, and decided to double-check the rates. My Credit Union Savings Account payed 4.29%, my Money Market Account payed 3.30%, and Apple would pay 4.15%. I'll watch those three rates for a month or two before I decide to move any money around.