The Citibank Account
from Citibank
Featured FiDeal
$100 Checking Account Bonus
Sometimes the folks at Citi just don't get it.
The mega-bank is running a $100 checking account promotion for current Citi credit card holders. Open a checking account with Citi - you can't have one already and just open another - and fund that account with $1000 or more by December 31, 2008 and Citi will credit your account with $100.
Of course there's a catch, similar to the recent Thank You Points promotion. You have to opt for Citibank Account, Citibank Everything Counts or Citigold relationship. These are all high balance accounts ($6000+ avoid a fee.)
In order to earn the bonus, you have to make at least one direct deposit or make at least two electronic bill payments for three consecutive months. By then, you will most likely have forgotten about the $100 bonus.
What I don't understand about promos like this is who the bank is trying to attract. Are potential Citigold customers - $100,000 combined balances over all Citi accounts - really going to hop over from Bank of America for $100?
About The Citibank Account
The Citibank Account Reviews
I will never become a customer of a bank that charges customers fees if the fall to a certain level. It's a complete joke.
Staff
I'm really not a fan of checking accounts that have fees. Citi is currently promoting this deal everywhere to bring in new customers, but it's only for its higher tier accounts.
So, they are revving up your rewards for a year and giving you $100 cash upfront. For someone who maintains a $6000 checking balance, you'd have to do a lot more to get them to switch.
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What Would You Do for 16,000 ThankYou Points?
Citi is currently offering 16,000 ThankYou points - good for a $100 cash reward or $150 in gift cards - as well as triple points for the first year to new customers who sign up for the Citibank Account or other higher tier Citi checking accounts.
To get both deals , you are required to:
- Open a checking account by the end of August.
- Be a new customer.
- Fund the account with $1000 by August (or September for online accounts).
- Enroll your Citi products - savings accounts, CDs, lines and loans - in the ThankYou Network.
- Do at least one of these each month for the first three months: one direct deposit, two electronic bill payments, or five signature debit card transactions.
Sounds okay so far, but hang on before you sign up. This catch is big. If you don’t keep up a $6,000 minimum balance across all of your Citibank accounts, you’ll get hit with a monthly fee ranging from $9.50 to $15, depending on state.
There's also a $.50 fee per check and $1.50 fee for non-Citibank ATMs. Suddenly those 16,000 points don’t look so great.
And if you sign up for the interest checking account, you’ll only be getting a mere .25% yield. If you can keep your balances totalling above $6,000 all of those fees will be waived.
The triple points, well, those go to anyone who signs up for the Citibank Account and have at least one credit or debit transaction a month.
This deal almost feels as contrived as Reward Checking Accounts !
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