[Expired] OneWest Bank $400 Business Bonus [CA, In Branch only]

Deal has expired, view more checking bonuses by clicking here

Update 8/23/19: Deal is back for 2019 and valid until December 31st, 2019. Instead of the merchant services bonus it’s now a $200 rebate towards equipment,  merchant services bonus was never worth doing either so this doesn’t really change anything. Hat tip to reader Vanson

Offer at a glance

• Maximum bonus amount: $400
• Availability: Any OneWest bank [branch locator]. All are in CA
• Direct deposit required: None
• Additional requirements: See below
• Hard/soft pull: Soft
• ChexSystems: Unknown
• Credit card funding:  Unknown 
• Monthly fees: $15, avoidable
• Early account termination fee: None mentioned
• Household limit: None
• Expiration date: October 31st, 2018 December 31st, 2019 March 31st, 2020

The Offer

Direct link to offer

• OneWest Bank is offering a bonus of up to $600 for new business customers. Bonus is broken down as follows:
  • $200 for opening OneBusiness Interest checking account with at least $1,500 and maintaining a daily minimum balance of $1,500 for 90 days
  • $200 for opening a OneBusiness Money Market Savings account with at least $10,000 and maintaining a daily minimum balance of $10,000 for 90 days
  • $200 rebate towards OneBusiness Equipment Financing Transaction

 

The Fine Print

• A $200 bonus offer applies to new OneBusiness Interest Checking accounts and new OneBusiness Money Market savings accounts opened by Southern California businesses between August 19, 2019 and December 31, 2019.
• To be eligible for a bonus, the OneBusiness Interest Checking account must be opened with an initial deposit of at least $1,500 and requires that an average daily balance of at least $1,500 be maintained for at least 90 days from the date of account funding.
• The OneBusiness Money Market Savings account must be opened with an initial deposit of at least $10,000 and requires that a minimum average daily balance of $10,000 be maintained for at least 90 days from the date of account funding.
• Funds used to open these accounts must be new money not on deposit or held at OneWest Bank or BankonCIT.com (CIT) at the time of account opening.
• Funds withdrawn from OneWest Bank or CIT within 90 days of account opening are also restricted.
• Bonuses will be paid in the form of a statement credit to the subject account within 30 days of completion of all of the aforementioned requirements.
• Account must be in good standing at the time of bonus payment. Limit one Checking account bonus and one Savings account bonus per customer.
• All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

There is no mention of any early account termination fee in the fee schedule. Both the savings and checking accounts have a $15 monthly fee, this is waived with an average monthly balance of $10,000 and a daily balance of at least $5,000 in the subject account.

Our Verdict

Even though the checking account only requires a deposit of $1,500, you’ll actually need to deposit $10,000 to keep it fee free. Checking account with earn 0.10% APY and savings will earn 0.15% APY with a balance of $10,000. You’d need to keep that money in there for ~120 days (90 days to trigger the bonus and then another 30 for it to post). If we put $10,000 into a high interest account over the same period we’d earn:

• 2% APY account (highest basic savings rate): ~$65.75
• 5% APY (highest rewards account rate): $164.38

This bonus is basically paying you slightly above 6% APY for the 120 days. That’s a pretty good deal, but it’s still a shame such a high deposit is required. We will add this bonus to our list of the best business checking & savings bonuses.

Hat tip to hiima

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