Certificates of Deposit
(CD) Rates

A Certificate of Deposit better known as a "CD"
is a longer term deposit placed with a bank or Credit Union.
CDs offer the advantage of FDIC insurance just like a checking
or savings account does.

In a CD you guarantee to allow the bank to keep your
money for a specified term in exchange for a higher interest
rate. Traditionally a checking account provided instant
access to your money a savings account could require that
you provide notice to the bank before you were able to withdraw
your money and a CD requires that you pay a penalty if you
withdraw it before the expiration.

CD interest rates generally track inflation fairly closely.
As inflation rates rise the yield of CDs has to rise as
well in order to induce depositors to lock their money into
an investment with a decreasing purchasing power.

When the inflation rate peaks however you may be able
to lock in a higher interest rate with a CD as current rates
fall.

One bank in the U.S. (EverBank®) even offers
CDs denominated in other currencies. This allows you to
hedge against a declining value of the U.S. Dollar by having
some of your money invested in other currencies (with an
FDIC guarantee). Of course if the Dollar appreciates against
the other currency your value may decrease and the FDIC
doesn't insure against that. But the long term trend
for the last 20 years has been down for the dollar. Foreign
currencies may also pay higher interest than the dollar.

Below is a list of the Current Rates available on CDs
at various banks including the minimum deposit required.