Multiple readers report that some of the Netspend cards now allow opening the savings account to get 5% interest without the need to first ‘Upgrade’ the account the account with a $500 direct deposit. This is especially important given the fact that the Netspend cards will soon need a real direct deposit to trigger the Upgrade.
- Guide to 5% Interest Prepaid/Savings Accounts
- Netspend 5% Savings Accounts on up to $5000
- Netspend to Require Real Direct Deposit for Initial Trigger of 5%
Under the new system, you can open the Savings without an upgrade and there’s no reason to upgrade your account or to get a direct deposit at all.
Not all of the Netspend varieties have this ability to open a Savings account without upgrading. Here is the info we have so far:
No Need for Direct-Deposit/Upgrade
- Netspend (multiple readers and Milesforfamily)
- Ace (reader Octavio)
- Western Union (personal experience and readers mentioned this too)
- HEB – as soon as your account has any amount of funds in it, you can open a savings account (reported by readers)
Requires Direct Deposit/Upgrade for Savings
- Brinks (confirmed by readers and by Travelwithgrant via personal communication)
Unknown
HEB- Control
- Paypal
It makes sense to do the Netspend, Ace, and Western Union cards first as those won’t need you to get a real direct deposit so as to enable the 5% Savings option.
ACH Pulls
On an unrelated note, a reader mentions using the routing/account numbers on Netspend to ACH-pull money from the Netspend into their regular checking account (transaction initiated from the regular checking account). Netspend went on to the decline the transaction, saying that funds on the card are only meant for making purchases or paying bills.
The rep confirmed that you can use the routing/account numbers to pay credit card bills, and I’ve personally had success making a Barclays credit card bill payment of ~$1,500. It may be worth unloading by paying credit card bills instead of ACH transfer to your bank, although small amounts should go through to the bank without a hitch.
Update: Other reports indicate that ACH pulls are working fine, even to a bank.
