Deal has expired and is no longer available. View the best current checking bonuses by clicking here.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300 (+$200 for merchant services)
- Availability: In branch only [Branch locator]. Branches are in CT, DE, D.C., MD, NJ, NY, PA, VA, WV
- Direct deposit required: No
- Additional requirements: Average balance of $5,000+ in third full calendar month
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Yes
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: $20, avoidable
- Early account termination fee: $50, 180-days
- Household limit: None
- Expiration date: December 31st, 2018
Contents
The Offer
- M&T Bank is offering a bonus of $300 when you open a new Tailored Business Checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Have an average ledger balance in the third full calendar month after the account was opened of at least $5,000
- You can also get $200 when you open a merchant services account. We talk about what merchant services accounts are and why those bonuses aren’t worth doing here.
The Fine Print
- We will credit one $300 bonus (“Checking Bonus”) to your new M&T Tailored Business Checking Account if the Average Ledger Balance in the Account, calculated for the third full calendar month after the Account was opened, is at least $5,000 and your account is opened by 12/31/18 (the “criteria”).
- If the criteria is met and the Account remains open, the Checking Bonus will be credited to the Account within 45 days after the end of the third full calendar month after the Account was opened.
- The Checking Bonus is reportable for tax purposes and is not available to employees of M&T Bank or any of its affiliates.
- This Checking Bonus is not available to customers who have had a nonpersonal M&T checking account within the previous 90 days or existing customers with a nonpersonal M&T checking account.
- Only one Checking Bonus will be awarded per customer.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
This account has a $20 monthly fee. This is waived if you:
- Maintain a $10,000 monthly average ledger balance
- Maintain $25,000 average ledger balance between checking & savings
- Make $2,000 in purchases on a linked M&T business credit card
- M&T bank merchant services account proceeds deposited
Early Account Termination Fee
The personal account has a $50 early account termination fee if closed within 180 days, not sure if it’s the same on this business account or not.
Our Verdict
It’s not clear what business documents are required to open an account with M&T. Their personal bonuses have been some of the best available ($100-$300 currently on offer) as they used to be churnable but that’s no longer the case. This bonus is good, but it looks like realistically you’d need to have $10,000 deposited to waive the monthly fee. I guess you could pay $120 in monthly fees and just put $5,000 into the account for the third month to trigger the bonus. Not sure if M&T waive the first few months as well or not. Even so a $300 return on $10,000 for six months is still great for most people. Because of that I will be adding this to our list of the best business checking bonuses.
Big thanks to reader, millionmilematt who let us know. Learn how to find bonuses and contribute to the site here.
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
