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Best FD Rates in Malaysia – Earn up to 4.01% for one year

What is a Fixed Deposit (FD)

A FD is a type of savings or investment account that guarantees a rate of interest for a fixed period offered by all banks in Malaysia. Unlike most regular savings accounts that calculates interest on a daily basis, no interest is paid to you if you decide to withdraw or uplift just one sen of your money before the end of the FD period, the maturity date . This means a smart saver will only enter into FDs when they are able to put cash aside for the entire period.

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Fixed Deposit Rates Comparison Tool - See the best rates for your desired deposit amount and tenure!

Best 1-month FD Rates
Best 3-month FD Rates
Best 6-month FD Rates
Best 9-month FD Rates
Best 12-month FD Rates

 

Fixed Deposit (FD) vs. Instant access savings (Savings Accounts)

FD Normal instant access savings
+ Generally higher rate of interest + Easy access to your savings
+ Guaranteed interest rate + Interest calculated daily
+ Easy calculations for your return + Generally lower minimum amount to open
- Less flexible/liquidity - Lower rate of interest

You might think putting your money in a normal savings account means you will get high rates of interest. But let’s take a real life example of the extra money you could be saving with a FD over the savings account from the same banking institution, CIMB Bank with a amount of RM25,000.

CIMB Instant Access Savings Fixed Deposit Extra RM straight into your pocket!
Interest Rate 0.40% 3.00%
1 Month RM3.88 RM62.50 RM58.67
Interest Rate 0.40% 3.05%
3 Months RM25.01 RM187.97 RM162.96
Interest rate 0.40% 3.15%
12 Months RM100.18 RM798.97 RM698.79

The interest rate can vary depending on the length of time you what to keep your money locked up. Normally, the longer the FD time period, the higher the interest rate the banks will offer as represented by the table above. Rates effective as of 17/02/2012.

Why do banks offer higher rates on FD?

It is also very important to know that the longer you fix for, the more you are risking the fact that an unpredicatable future means this could be a bad choice. If interest rates were to increase rapidly, you would’ve lost the flexibility to change and switch to a better FD account without losing the interest that you had earned so far. That is one of the reasons why banks can give you higher interest rates than most savings accounts because you are taking this ‘time risk.’ Furthermore banks don’t pay interest if you withdraw any funds earlier than your selected maturity. This means you have more of an incentive to keep your money with them until the end of the period, thus holding your cash for longer over basic savings accounts!

 

Do you depend on savings interest as your income source?

When using fixed rate savings, you won’t usually get paid monthly interest. Therefore many who rely on interest earned from savings as an income stream don’t use FDs, even though they’re paying higher rates. Yet there’s a way to work around this easily.

Here’s an example: Ali has RM100,000, and can get 4% in a 12-month FD and only 1% in an instant access savings account. He would like about RM4,000 of interest from these savings to add to his income for spending. To do this, he should put RM96,000 in the FD, and RM4,000 in the instant access savings. Then spend the instant access money over the year, knowing the RM3,840 interest earned in the fixed account will make up for it. He’ll effectively get the high rate and be spending the interest.

This way you can grab the higher rate FD accounts, but retain access to enough cash in the meantime. Remember though, if you might need to get at the whole lump within the fixed term, this trick won’t help and FDs may not be for you.

Is my money safe in Fixed Deposits?

During the 2008 financial crisis, global banks around the world starting collapsing and since then, people started to question the security of their savings. The possibility of local and foreign banks in Malaysia remaining in business forever is not guaranteed and thus your savings could be at risk should a bank fail. So is your money safe?

The golden rule to saving is to ensure you put your cash into a Malaysia regulated bank that is protected under the Perbadanan Insurans Deposit Malaysia (PIDM) membership scheme. PIDM protects your bank deposits and will promptly reimburse you on your insured deposits should a member bank fail and there is no charge for this insurance protection.  Keep an eye out for the logo at your banking institution (image below).

Savings of up to RM 250,000 is guaranteed by the PIDM per institution so if you have less than than, you don’t have too much to worry about. If you have more to save, you can get protection on your entire savings by dividing your savings into several FD accounts/bank institutions.

Example: you had RM1,000,000 and didn’t want to take any risk, you could open 4 separate FDs in 4 separate banks.

Another way to protect your savings is to open joint accounts because they also enjoy separate deposit insurance under the PIDM scheme. You could place RM250,000 into your own FD but also open a joint FD accounts with your father, mother spouse etc.

What you are effectively doing is spreading the risk over many banks and thus not putting all your eggs into one basket. Click here for a list of all PIDM member institutions.

See the full Are My Savings Safe in a Bank Article.

The Best 1-Month FD Rates – up to 3.10% p.a.

Keeping money in a 1-month FD is a simple way to increase your interest income without having to sacrifice too much short term requirement of funds. By managing your monthly incomings and outgoings you can organise a different 1-month FD every month and still have access to your funds when you need it on one day each month.

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen – Highest 1-month FD rate at 3.26% p.a.
Drawback: no explict guarantee from PIDM, only Ministry of Finance implicit guarantee

Interest Rate: 3.26% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 5,000
Minimum Age Requirement: 
18 yrs
Tenure: 1-month
Features: - Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen
1. Investors can take profits of each month for a period of 6 months with an investment of RM20, 000.00 and above.
2. Automatic renewal of certificates.
3. Investment certificates can be used as collateral for such financing: Secured Investment Certificate-i Al-Mudharabah, Education Financing-i Al-Falah and Contract Financing-i Tijari.

Calculated Interest:

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen 0.268% 3.26% p.a.
Deposit Amount 1 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM26.77 RM326.00
RM50,000 RM133.85 RM1,630.00
RM100,000 RM267.69 RM3,260.00
 
Go to Bank Raykat
Bank Rakyat’s Akaun Deposit-i Makeen is the market leader at 3.26% p.a, outfoxing it’s nearest competitors by a significant margin ( most other banks hover around the 2.90%-3.00% rate to Affin Bank’s 3.06% p.a.) However, our main concern is with their PIDM status. As Bank Rakyat is a Cooperative Bank, they are not covered under this explicit guarantee. As such, you will only get implicit protection from the Ministry of Finance under the Development of Financial Institution Act (DAFIA).

 

Affin Islamic Bank General Investment Account-i – 1-month rate at 3.06% p.a
Drawback: limited branches in Malaysia, minimum deposit of RM5,000 

Interest Rate: 3.06% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 5,000
Minimum Age Requirement: 
18 yrs
Tenure: 1-month
Features:
1. Flexible period of investment from 1 month to 60 months and allow you to make partial withdrawals.
2.Automatic renewal upon maturity.
3.Profit earned can be automatically credited into your Current Account and Saving Account.

Calculated Interest:

Affin Islamic GIA 0.251% 3.06% p.a.
Deposit Amount 1 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM25.15 RM306.00
RM50,000 RM125.75 RM1,530.00
RM100,000 RM251.49 RM3,060.00
Go to Affin Islamic Bank
Affin Islamic Bank’s rate of 3.06% p.a is market leading among the more established banks in the industry, but only marginally. Most large banks in Malaysia offer between 2.90%-3.00% for 1-month FDs.

 

 The Best 1-month FD rate for Senior Citizens

Public Bank Golden 50 PLUS Fixed Deposit Account-highest 1-month among major banks at 3.1% p.a.
Drawback: minimum age of 50 yrs, minimum deposit of RM30,000 

Interest rate: 3.1% p.a
Minimum Deposit:
 RM30,000
Minimum Age Requirement: 
 50 yrs
Tenure: 1-month
Features:
1. Optional overdraft facility of up to 100% margin at attractive rates.
2. No introducer is required if you wish to open a current account.
3. Waiver of service charge for current account.
4. Special discounts applicable to accountholders aged 50 years and above:
- 50% discount on commission for purchase of Travellers’ Cheques.
- 50% discount on rental and renewal of a safe deposit box for 2 years, where available.
- 50% discount when making a Will or creating a Trust with PB Trustee Services Berhad.
- 1/8% off the Bank’s prevailing selling rates for purchase of foreign currency notes.
- Discounts on the following insurance products with Lonpac Insurance Berhad:-

Type Discount Rate
Householders Insurance 15%
Traveller Personal Accident Insurance 25%
Golfers Insurance 25%

5.

Placement Options Option 1 Option 2
Tenure 1 to 12 months 15, 18, 21, 24, 36, 48 & 60 months
Interest Rate 0.1% p.a. above the prevailing PLUS Fixed Deposit interest rates for the respective tenures 0.1% p.a. above the prevailing 15 months PLUS Fixed Deposit interest rates
Interest Payment Method Credited into customer’s savings or current account maintained with the Bank upon maturity,
OR
Add to the principal upon maturity
Credited into customer’s savings or current account maintained with the Bank on a monthly basis

Calculated Interest:

PB Golden 50 PLUS FD 0.255% 3.10% p.a.
Deposit Amount 1 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM25.47 RM310.00
RM50,000 RM127.37 RM1,550.00
RM100,000 RM254.73 RM3,100.00

Eligible for protection by PIDM

 
Go to Public Bank
Public Bank’s Golden 50 PLUS Fixed Deposit Account is market leading among the more established banks, but only by a slim margin. Most large banks in Malaysia offer 2.90%-3.00% p.a for a 1-month tenure. Senior citizens (50 yrs or older) who are willing to deposit RM30,000 of their money can enjoy leading market rates, along with a slew of other benefits, which in our opinon, make it a very attractive package.


The Best 3-Month FD rates -  up to 3.65% p.a

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen – Competitive 3-month FD rate at 3.65% p.a.
Drawback: no explict guarantee from PIDM, only Ministry of Finance implicit guarantee

Interest Rate: 3.65% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 
18 yrs
Tenure: 3-months
Features: - Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen
1. Investors can take profits of each month for a period of 6 months with an investment of RM20, 000.00 and above.
2. Automatic renewal of certificates.
3. Investment certificates can be used as collateral for such financing: Secured Investment Certificate-i Al-Mudharabah, Education Financing-i Al-Falah and Contract Financing-i Tijari.

Calculated Interest:

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen 0.268% 3.26% p.a.
Deposit Amount 1 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM26.77 RM326.00
RM50,000 RM133.85 RM1,630.00
RM100,000 RM267.69 RM3,260.00
 
Go to Bank Raykat
Bank Rakyat’s Akaun Deposit-i Makeen is a market leader at 3.65% p.a. However, our main concern is with their PIDM status. As Bank Rakyat is a Cooperative Bank, they are not covered under this explicit guarantee. As such, you will only get implicit protection from the Ministry of Finance under the Development of Financial Institution Act (DAFIA).

 

OCBC Share For More Fixed Deposit and Commodity Murabahah General Investment Account-i Promotion 3-Months 3.55% p.a. and 12-Months 3.70% p.a. (until 30th June 2013)
Drawbacks: only eligible for joint depositors.

Promotion Period: 1st April – 30th June 2013
Minimum Deposit: RM5,000
Maximum Deposit: RM1million
Interest Rate:
1.3-month: 3.55%p.a.
2.12-month: 3.70%p.a.
Highlighted Terms and Conditions:
1.Eligible only for FD and / or CMGIA-i accounts by joint depositors.
2.The minimum FD/CMGIA-i placement under this promotion is RM5,000 and maximum placement is RM1million per account. 3.This promotion’s availability is subject to overall accumulated deposit placement amount of RM1.5 billion. Once the RM1.5 billion mark is reached, OCBC and / or OABB reserves the right to discontinue this promotion with prior notice, without affecting the FDs and CMGIA-i’s that have already been placed under this promotion.
For full terms and conditions, click here.
ocbc bank logo
Go To OCBC
OCBC offer a very straight forward 3-months and 12-months fixed deposit promotion recently, this means that all you need to do is just deposit your money into the account, and you don’t need to worry about CASA Bundle or Step Up is this promotion. You can get up to 3.55% p.a. for 3-months FD and up to 3.70% p.a. for 12-months FD. The requirement that you must take note is this promotion is only for joint depositors. The minimum deposit required for this promotion is RM5,000 and the maximum deposit is RM1million. So, what is the amount of interest you can earned in this promotion?
OCBC Promotion Deposit Amount 3-Months Interest (3.55% p.a.) 12-months Interest (3.70%p.a.)
RM5000 RM43.80 RM185.00
RM10,000 RM87.59 RM370.00
RM20,000 RM175.18 RM740.00
The interest rate of 3.55% p.a. for 3-month fixed deposit and 3.70% p.a. for 12-month fixed deposit is quite high, and it actually brings this promotion to one of the top in 3-month and 12-month Fixed Deposit market, Bank Rakyat offered 3.65% p.a. for 3-month fixed deposit and 4.01% p.a. for 12-month fixed deposit.
Interested to know more about FD as well as the top rates for different FD tenures? Then head on to our “Best FD Rates in Malaysia – Earn up to 4.01% for one year” article! Or you can try our very handy Fixed Deposit Comparison Tool to compare the available bank and FD rates in the market!

The Best 6-Month FD rates – up to 3.91% p.a.

KFH International Commodity Murabahah Deposit-i Campaign – 6 / 12 / 24 Months Fixed Deposit Promotion at 3.88% p.a. (until 30th June 2013)
Drawbacks: minimum deposit of RM20,000

Promotion End Date: 30 June 2013
Minimum Deposit: RM20,000.00
Maximum Deposit: None
Tenure: 6, 12, 24 Months
Interest Rate: 3.88%
Highlighted Terms and Conditions:
1.The campaign is applicable to individual customer, aged 18 years and above, whom are Malaysians and foreigners residing in Malaysia.
2.To participate in the campaign, customer are requried to open or maintain a current or savings account with Kuwait Finance House Malaysia Berhad for profit payment purposes.
3.The minimum placement amount in International Commodity Murabahah Deposit-i Account is RM20,000 in a single receipt.
 
For full terms and conditions, click here.
kfh logo
Go To KFH
Kuwait Finance House International Commodity Murabahah Deposit-i Campaign is back again! This time they offered 6, 12 and 24 month tenures with 3.88% p.a. Same with the previous, the promotion is actually very straight forward, this mean that all you need to do is just deposit your money into the account and the 3.88% will charged on it. (you don’t need worry about CASA or Step Up in this promotion)
The table below show the the amount of interest you can get with 6, 12 and 24 months tenures:
KFH Promotion Deposit Amount 6 months interest (3.88% p.a.) 12 months interest (3.88% p.a.) 24 months interest (3.88% p.a.)
RM20,000 RM384.31 RM776.00 RM1,582.11
RM50,000 RM960.77 RM1,940.00 RM3,955.27
RM100,000 RM1,921.54 RM3,880.00 RM7,910.54
The interest rate of 3.88% is quite high, and it actually brings this promotion to the top in 6 month Fixed Deposit market and one of the top in 12 month Fixed Deposit market. The only thing we don’t really like for this promotion is the minimum deposit for this promotion is RM20,000.

Standard Chartered 6 Month Fixed Deposit + “CASA” JustOne Account + Credit Card – Enjoy up to 3.9% p.a. – Effective rate of 2.19% to 3.91% p.a. (ends 30th June 2013)
Drawbacks: Effective rate depends on amount deposited into the FD account; requires monthly deposit into the CASA.

Promotion Period: 1st April – 30th June 2013.
Minimum Age: 18 Years
Minimum Fixed Deposit: RM5,000.00
Maximum Fixed Deposit: RM300,000.00
Effective Rate: 2.19% p.a. – 3.91% p.a.
Highlighted Terms & Conditions:
1. Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) customers who have participated in the previous JustOne Account and Fixed Deposit Campaign (7th February 2013 – 31st March 2013) will not be eligible to participate in this Campaign.
2. JustOne Account holders with SCBMB and Saadiq JustOne Account holders with Standard Chartered Saadiq Berhad (SCSB) are entitled to the Bonus Interest on a 6-month Fixed Deposit opened under this Campaign with SCBMB using fresh funds if they satisfy the following requirements:
(a) The fixed deposit amount must be at least RM5,000.00 and must not exceed RM300,000.00;
(b) Only a single fixed deposit per eligible customer will be eligible for the Bonus Interest under this Campaign;
(c) The name(s) of the fixed deposit account holder(s) must be completely identical to the name of the JustOne Account / Saadiq JustOne Account-i holder(s), including the order in which they appear in the relevant bank’s records;
(d) The JustOne Account / Saadiq JustOne Account-i monthly deposit requirement (as described in the JustOne Account / Saadiq JustOne Account-i terms and conditions) must be fulfilled for five (5) consecutive months of the fixed deposit tenure.
4. If the JustOne Account / Saadiq JustOne Account-i is closed at any time before the Bonus Interest is credited, the customer will not get the Bonus Interest nor the Additional Interest. Fixed deposits which are fully or partially uplifted before maturity will also not be entitled to any Bonus Interest nor Additional Interest.
5. The Additional Interest on the 6-month Fixed Deposit only applies to New Standard Chartered Credit Card customers with either a JustOne Preferred Account or a JustOne Personal Account.
For the full Terms and Conditions, click here.
 standard chartered logo
Go To Standard Chartered
Standard Chartered has introduced their latest Fixed Deposit promotion, which is open to customers who have a JustOne Account with Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad or a Saadiq JustOne Account-i with Standard Chartered Saadiq Berhad, whether opened before or during the Campaign Period. It bears some similarities to their previous promotion that ended 31st March 2013, but let’s take a look what’s new on offer.
standard chartered casa2
A closer look tells us that in this promotion, the Fixed Deposit is paired with a Standard Chartered “CASA” JustOne Account. Basically, besides depositing a minimum of RM5,000.00 into the FD, you’ll need to choose a JustOne Account. The table above shows that the interest rate you get depends on the JustOne Account you choose.
If you choose a JustOne Priority Account, you need to have a minimum deposit of RM10,000.00 in it, and the interest rate you’ll get for the FD is 4.00% p.a. For JustOne Preferred Accounts the minimum deposit is RM5,000.00 into the CASA and the highest interest rate you can get is 3.90% p.a. (only if the SCB Credit Card application is approved within the campaign period, otherwise its 3.70% p.a.), and the minimum deposit for JustOne Personal Accounts is RM1,500.00 with a possible 3.70% p.a. interest rate (only if the SCB Credit Card application is approved within the campaign period, otherwise its 3.50% p.a.).
You might have noted that in the above chart, it says “Monthly Deposit Requirement”. A call to Standard Chartered clarified that while you do have to ensure the account remains activated every month, the monthly deposits do not need to be new funds (i.e. after the initial deposit, you may take out the money to be re-deposited the following month).
So how much can you actually get from this promotion? Let us show you a few examples that we assume you do not get the credit card (which may not be a top credit card, for the top credit cards in Malaysia, check out our Best Cashback Credit Cards Aritcle), this means no 0.2% additional interest rate:
Example 1 : JustOne Priority Account / Saadiq JustOne Priority Account-i
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Priority Account / Saadiq JustOne Priority Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM5,000.00 RM10,000.00 RM10,000.00 RM15,000.00
Interest Rate p.a. 4.00% 1.00% 2.75% 2.19%
Interest Generated RM99.02 RM41.55 RM22.63 RM163.20
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Priority Account / Saadiq JustOne Priority Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM300,000.00 RM10,000.00 RM10,000.00 RM310,000.00
Interest Rate p.a. 4.00% 1.00% 2.75% 3.91%
Interest Generated RM5,941.17 RM41.55 RM22.63 RM6,005.35
Example 2 : JustOne Preferred Account / Saadiq JustOne Preferred Account-i
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Preferred Account / Saadiq JustOne Preferred Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM5,000.00 RM5,000.00 RM5,000.00 RM10,000.00
Interest Rate p.a. 3.70% 0.50% 2.75% 2.28%
Interest Generated RM91.66 RM10.40 RM11.32 RM113.38
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Preferred Account / Saadiq JustOne Preferred Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM300,000.00 RM5,000.00 RM5,000.00 RM305,000.00
Interest Rate p.a. 3.70% 0.50% 2.75% 3.65%
Interest Generated RM5,499.59 RM10.40 RM11.32 RM5,521.31
Example 3 : JustOne Personal Account / Saadiq JustOne Personal Account-i
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Personal Account / Saadiq JustOne Personal Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM5,000.00 RM1,500.00 RM1,500.00 RM6,500.00
Interest Rate p.a. 3.50% 0.25% 2.75% 2.842%
Interest Generated RM86.75 RM1.56 RM3.39 RM91.70
Standard Chartered Promo Promo FD JustOne Personal Aacount / Saadiq JustOne Personal Account-i (5 month CASA) 1 Month Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM300,000.00 RM1,500.00 RM1,500.00 RM301,500.00
Interest Rate p.a. 3.50% 0.25% 2.75% 3.49%
Interest Generated RM5,024.85 RM1.56 RM3.39 RM5,209.81
*Note to clarify: The one-month conventional FD is the amount that has been uplifted from the 5-month CASA to make a total of six months to match the promotional FD.
From the examples above, we have found that the best way to maximise your effective interest rate is by depositing the maximum amount of RM300,000.00 into the Fixed Deposit account. Doing so will net you an effective rate of 3.85% p.a., which is very close to the advertised 3.90% p.a. With a lesser amount, however, you will not manage to get the highlighted rates.
Also, why not take a look at our easy-to-use Fixed Deposit Comparison tool to find the best FD account for you!

 

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen (Fixed Deposit)- top 6 month rate at 3.75% p.a
Drawback: no explicit guarantee from PIDM, only Ministry of Finance implicit guarantee

Interest Rate: 3.75% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 18 yrs
Tenure: 6-months
Features: Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen
1. Investors can take profits of each month for a period of 6 months with an investment of RM20, 000.00 and above.
2. Automatic renewal of certificates.
3. Investment certificates can be used as collateral for such financing: Secured Investment Certificate-i Al-Mudharabah, Education Financing-i Al-Falah and Contract Financing-i Tijari.

 

Calculated Interest:
 

Bank Rakyat 6-months 1.858% 3.75% p.a.
Deposit Amount 6 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM185.77 RM375.00
RM50,000 RM928.87 RM1,875.00
RM100,000 RM1,857.74 RM3,750.00
Go to Bank Rakyat
Bank Rakyat’s Akaun Deposit-i Makeen is the market leader here with 3.75% p.a. Our main concern is with their PIDM status. As Bank Rakyat is a Cooperative Bank, they are not covered under this explicit guarantee, and you will only get implicit protection from the Ministry of Finance under the Development of Financial Institution Act (DAFIA).

 

Hong Leong Priority Banking Premium Fixed Deposit Promotion – 3.98% p.a. for 6-month FD / CASA Bundling (6th March – 30th June 2013)
Drawbacks : Exclusive for HLB Priority Banking Customers only, Minimum deposit RM50,000

Minimum Deposit:
Tier I – RM50,000 to RM999,999
Tier II – RM1,000,000 to RM3,000,000
Minimum Deposit Amount in CASA :
For Tier I Deposit – 8% of the FD deposit
For Tier II Deposit – RM80,000
CASA Tenure : Earmark for 4 months
Interest Rate: 3.98% p.a
Features :
1. The Hong Leong Bank Berhad Priority Banking Premium Fixed Deposit Promotion is exclusive to all new and existing HLB Priority Banking including Malaysian and non-Malaysian Residents, unless notified otherwise.
2. Minimum FD placement amount is RM50,000 and maximum is RM3,000,000 per PB Customer.
3. To enjoy the promotional rate of 3.98%p.a. for 6 months FD, PB Customers are required to deposit the stipulated minimum amount into a nominated CASA, whereby the minimum amount in the nominated CASA shall be earmarked for four months.
4. In the event the CASA earmarked amount is cancelled, removed or released in less than 4 months for whatever reasons, the prevailing 6 months FD board rate shall apply instead of 3.98%p.a. FD promotional rate. The prevailing 6 months FD board rate as at 6 March 2013 is 3.10%p.a.
5. Partial withdrawal of FD is allowed in multiples of Ringgit Malaysia Three Thousand (RM3,000). However, if the balance in FD Account is less than Ringgit Malaysia Ten Thousand (RM10,000), PB Customers are required to withdraw in full. No partial withdrawal is permitted
Go To Hong Leong
Hong Leong’s latest promotion offers a quite high promotional rate of 3.98% p.a for their 6-month Fixed Deposit. However, upon a closer we realized that look shows us that this Fixed Deposit promotion is actually bundled together with a CASA account, and this almost always means that you can expect a lower effective rate. But first up, we should let you know that this promotion is for new and existing Hong Leong Bank Priority Banking customers only. 
In order to be eligible for this promotion, you need to deposit a specific sum into a Hong Leong CASA account. In this case, the CASA amount depends on your Fixed Deposit placement amount :
Tier I : If your FD placement amount is between RM50,000 to RM999,999, you have to deposit an additional of 8% of your FD placement into a CASA account. Example : If your FD placement is RM50,000, your CASA deposit is RM4,000 (8% of RM50,000), so your total deposit will be RM54,000.
 Here’s a calculation of how much interested you can earn :
Hong Leong Priority Banking Promo Promo FD 4 Months CASA 2 Months Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM50,000 RM4,000 RM4,000 RM54,000
Interest Rate p.a. 3.98% 1.00% 3% 3.81%
Interest Generated RM985.29 RM13.29 RM19.75 RM1,018.34
From the table above, you can see that you won’t actually be getting 3.98% p.a. as advertised by Hong Leong.
Tier II :  As for tier II, if your FD placement is between RM1,000,000 to RM3,000,000, you have to deposit RM80,000 into your CASA account to be eligible in this promotion.Similarly, you still won’t get the promo price of 3.98%, but the more you put in, the more interest you’ll generate :
Hong Leong Priority Banking Promo Promo FD 4 Months CASA 2 Months Conventional FD Total
Initial Deposit RM2,000,000 RM80,000 RM80,000 2,080,000
Interest Rate p.a. 3.98% 1.00% 3.00% 3.89%
Interest Generated RM39,411.68 RM265.78 RM395.09 RM40,072.55
For these table above, the CASA accounts will be earmarked for 4 months (means you can’t take your money out for 4 months, basically). So once the 4 months is up, you might as well put them into a conventional FD for 2 months (because FD have higher interest than CASA) while waiting for your promotional 6-month FD to reach its prime. This will of course, helps generate even more interest during the whole six months!

 

Affin Islamic Bank General Investment Account-i – competitive 6-month rate of 3.26% p.a., good if you don’t want Bank Rakyat
Drawback: limited branches in Malaysia

Interest Rate: 3.26% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 
18 yrs
Tenure: 6-months
Features:
1. Flexible period of investment from 1 month to 60 months and allow you to make partial withdrawals.
2.Automatic renewal upon maturity.
3.Profit earned can be automatically credited into your Current Account and Saving Account.

Calculated Interest:

Affin/Affin Islamic 6-months 1.617% 3.26% p.a.
Deposit Amount 6 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM161.69 RM326.00
RM50,000 RM808.46 RM1,630.00
RM100,000 RM1,616.93 RM3,260.00
Go to Affin Islamic Bank

 The Best 9-month FD rates – up to 3.85% p.a

Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen (Fixed Deposit)- top 9 month rate at 3.75% p.a
Drawback: no explicit guarantee from PIDM, only Ministry of Finance implicit guarantee

Interest Rate: 3.85% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 18 yrs
Tenure: 9-months
Features: Bank Rakyat Qiradh GIA
1. Investors can take profits of each month for a period of 6 months with an investment of RM20, 000.00 and above.
2. Automatic renewal of certificates.
3. Investment certificates can be used as collateral for such financing: Secured Investment Certificate-i Al-Mudharabah, Education Financing-i Al-Falah and Contract Financing-i Tijari.

 

Calculated Interest:

Bank Rakyat 9-months 2.874% 3.85% p.a.
Deposit Amount 9 month Interest 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM287.38 RM385.00
RM50,000 RM1,436.91 RM1,925.00
RM100,000 RM2,873.82 RM3,850.00
Go to Bank Rakyat
Once again, Bank Rakyat’s Akaun Deposit-i Makeen is the market leader here with 3.75% p.a. Our main concern is with their PIDM status. As Bank Rakyat is a Cooperative Bank, they are not covered under this explicit guarantee, and you will only get implicit protection from the Ministry of Finance under the Development of Financial Institution Act (DAFIA).

 


The Best 12-Month FD rates –  up to 4.01 % p.a

Bank Rakyat Qiradh GIA / GIA (Mubeen) (Fixed Deposit) – highest 12 month rate at 4.01% p.a
Drawback: no explicit guarantee from PIDM, only Ministry of Finance implicit guarantee

Interest Rate: 4.01% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 18 yrs
Tenure: 12-months
Features: Bank Rakyat Akaun Deposit-i Makeen
1. Investors can take profits of each month for a period of 6 months with an investment of RM20,000.00 and above.
2. Automatic renewal of certificates.
3. Investment certificates can be used as collateral for such financing: Secured Investment Certificate-i Al-Mudharabah, Education Financing-i Al-Falah and Contract Financing-i Tijari.

 

Calculated Interest:

Bank Rakyat 12-months 4.01% p.a.
Deposit Amount 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM401.00
RM50,000 RM2,005.00
RM100,000 RM4,010.00
Go to Bank Rakyat
No surprises here, Bank Rakyat’s Akaun Deposit-i Makeen is the market leader with 4.01% p.a. However, once again, our main concern is with their PIDM status. As Bank Rakyat is a Cooperative Bank, they are not covered under this explicit guarantee, and you will only get implicit protection from the Ministry of Finance under the Development of Financial Institution Act (DAFIA).

 

Affin Islamic Bank General Investment Account-i – competitive 6-month rate of 3.60% p.a., good if you don’t want Bank Rakyat
Drawback: limited branches in Malaysia

Interest Rate: 3.60% p.a
Minimum Deposit: 
RM 500
Minimum Age Requirement: 
18 yrs
Tenure: 12-months
Features:
1. Flexible period of investment from 1 month to 60 months and allow you to make partial withdrawals.
2.Automatic renewal upon maturity.
3.Profit earned can be automatically credited into your Current Account and Saving Account.

Calculated Interest:

Affin Bank/Affin Islamic Bank 12-month General Investment Account-i 3.60% p.a.
Deposit Amount 12 months interest
RM10,000 RM360.00
RM50,000 RM1,800.00
RM100,000 RM3,600.00


Go to Affin Islamic Bank

OCBC Solo Fixed Deposit and Commodity Murabahah General Investment Account-i 3.40% p.a. for 3-month and 12-month Fixed Deposit Promotion (until 30th June 2013)
Drawbacks: Rates are not as competitive as others in the market.

Promotion Period: 1st April – 30th June 2013
Minimum Deposit: RM5,000
Maximum Deposit: RM1million
Interest Rate: 3.40% for 3-month and 12-month Fixed Deposit
Highlighted Terms and Conditions:
1. The Promotion is valid from 1st April – 30th June 2013
2.The minimum FD / CMGIA-i placement under this promotion is RM5,000 and maximum placement is RM1million per account.
 
For full terms and conditions, click here.
 ocbc bank logo
Go To OCBC
OCBC recently have a few promotion for Fixed Deposit. The three main FD promotion that they offer are joint depositors FD, CASA Bundle FD and Solo FD. So, if you not interested in CASA Bundle FD or you want to open a FD account alone, then Solo FD may be your cup of tea.
The Solo Fixed Deposit is a very straight forward promotion, all you need to do is just deposit your money into the account and the 3.40% p.a. will charged on it. The minimum deposit for this promotion is RM5,000. The table below show the amount of interest you can get with 3 and 12 months tenures:
 

OCBC Promotion Deposit Amount 3 months interest (3.40% p.a.) 12 months interest (3.40% p.a.)
RM5,000 RM41.97 RM170.00
RM10,000 RM83.94 RM340.00
RM20,000 RM167.87 RM680.00
The interest rate of 3.40% p.a. doesn’t bring the promotion as one of the top 3-month or 12-month FD in the market. You can actually get up to 3.65% p.a. for 3-month FD from and 4.01% p.a. for 12-month FD from Bank Rakyat.

 

Some additional points for the high flyers out there:

If you are a preferred or priority bank customer, you may receive higher rate than what’s advertised online or in branch. Furthermore, having a long standing relationship with a Bank also can give you more leverage over interest rate negotiations. Banks like to keep their existing preferred/premier customers happy and having a good history with your Relationship Manager can also give you more power in your discussions with them.

Final SaveMoney FD tips

  1. Although rates are published, always ask to speak to someone in the bank to negotiate the interest rate (the higher the amount saved, the more leverage you have to grab a better deal!)
  2. Spread your savings of up to RM 250,000 per FD account to keep it extra safe.
  3. Keep scouting around for the highest FD rate (or keep checking us out!).
  4. And finally, start saving NOW. It’s never too early to start saving money!

Beware of the Dog

Only enter into an FD if you don’t need the whole lump sum within the fixed term. Look out for FDs that charges a penalty or fine for withdrawing money out before the end of the period, not just waiving the interest. Some FDs are not auto renewable which means going into the branch is the only way to extend your saving period.

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