JGibbs wrote:

JacksonM wrote:
As you said though, everything's low. I've done the math with some CDs/ but it ends up not being worth it.

Are stocks about the only option right now for worthwhile investments? Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are too volatile for me and I'm not good at Forex trading, so I feel like stocks are my only option now. It seems like the less risky options like CDs and bonds just aren't worthwhile enough to bother with. Many also carry fees that eat into the value.

Just make sure you know the risks of investing in stocks right now as they are at all-time highs.

JacksonM wrote:
As you said though, everything's low. I've done the math with some CDs/ but it ends up not being worth it.

Are stocks about the only option right now for worthwhile investments? Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are too volatile for me and I'm not good at Forex trading, so I feel like stocks are my only option now. It seems like the less risky options like CDs and bonds just aren't worthwhile enough to bother with. Many also carry fees that eat into the value.

Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer of the Federal Reserve recently gave a speech to the Economic Club of New York on this very topic. It's fairly long but the gist seems to be that there are factors both boosting savings and depressing investment, which is bad for interest rates. The full article is here: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/fischer20161017a.htm

Barclays online offers 1% APY on a savings account. You really have to dig for rates better than 2% these days.

Does anyone know why this is? Why rates are so low right now?

The high-interest savings account is what drew me to ING. At the time I signed up, they were offering somewhere around 3% interest. I watched it drop over the years, and it's been holding at 0.75%. Not the best, but better than my credit union.

As you said though, everything's low. I've done the math with some CDs but it ends up not being worth it.

JacksonM wrote: I started with online banking when it was ING. It seemed like a good way to hide money from myself and actually earn a little for my trouble. Since it was taken over, I haven't had any trouble with Capital One. Mostly I'm bothered by the fact that now that I have money, the interest rate has dropped so low.

CapitalOne has pretty good reviews on customer service so that is good to hear. You aren't going to earn any interest on a checking/savings account. Even CD rates are so low.

I started with online banking when it was ING. It seemed like a good way to hide money from myself and actually earn a little for my trouble. Since it was taken over, I haven't had any trouble with Capital One. Mostly I'm bothered by the fact that now that I have money, the interest rate has dropped so low.

I read about this today. Looks like Capital One is really serious about online banking.

It is going to happen. Capital One agreed to purchase ING USA.

The following information was published in the Wall Street Journal Online Thursday, 06-16-11; BY MATTHIAS RIEKER. ING Groep NV decided to sell its U.S. online-banking business to Capital One Financial Corp., according to people familiar with the matter. The announcement of the deal, valued at $9 billion, is expected soon soon. Capital One will pay $6.2 billion in cash and $2.8 billion in stock for ING Direct USA, which will give ING an about 10% ownership stake in the McLean, Va., bank, according to a person familiar with the matter. Capital One will raise $2 billion in fresh capital before the deal closes, expected later this year, this person said.

Yep... ING USA is on the sale block. Parent Company of the Netherlands-based ING Groep NV needs to divest itself of the holdings by the end of 2013 as part of a larger reorganization from the European Commission. It just keeps on coming...