Capital One will buy Discover Financial Services, WSJ reports. The bank will keep the Discover brand. The massive merger will combine two of the largest credit card issuers in the US.
Capital One uses Visa and Mastercard for most of its cards. They plans to switch some of their cards to the Discover network, and continue using Visa and Mastercard for others.
Now, what’s on my mind: will Discover start doing 3-pulls for credit card applications? 🙂 In all likelihood, it will be many years until there are any changes to how either bank operates. It remains to be seen if this will affect credit card or bank signup bonuses in the longer term.
It might come as a surprise that Capital One, one of the largest corporations in the world, is headquartered in McLean, Virginia–a town with around 50,000 residents. Since its establishment in 1994, this financial giant, despite its modest roots, has made a significant mark on a global scale. It operates in five countries, has nearly 300 branch locations, and maintains around 1900 Capital One-branded ATMs.
Capital One offers credit cards, loans, commercial services, checking, and savings accounts. If you’re not near any of its branch locations, such as one of its 54 café locations, you can still bank online. Its online division is called Capital One 360, and that’s where you can find high-yield savings accounts, checking accounts, and certificates of deposits (CDs).
This review focuses on the products you can find through its Capital One 360 service. All rates and fees are current as of February 14, 2024, and are subject to change.
Capital One 360 at a glance
Checking accounts: Starting at $0 per month
Savings accounts: Open with as little as $0
CD rates: Earn up to 5.00% annual percentage yield (APY)
Who is Capital One good for?
Capital One is ideal for anyone who appreciates a digital banking experience so they can handle banking tasks anytime, anywhere, with few fees or minimum requirements. Its checking and savings accounts have no minimum account opening requirements, no minimum balance requirements to earn interest, and no monthly fees. Setting up multiple accounts is easy, and you can view these from a single dashboard, making it ideal for those who have specific goals set up for each account they have.
For people who travel frequently, having access to a large network of fee-free ATMs means easy access to cash. Additionally, if located near any one of its 50-plus café-style branches, customers can enjoy a coworking space and coffee shop all rolled into their banking experience.
Who shouldn’t use Capital One?
Capital One uses a tool called Early Warning Services (EWS), which, similar to a credit score, assigns a deposit account score on a scale from 495 to 1,000, instead of evaluating traditional creditworthiness. This is a company co-owned by seven large financial institutions, including Capital One, who help detect and prevent fraud associated with banking transactions and make it easier for institutions to make account opening decisions.
If you have a history of account defaults, first-party fraud, or other similar account issues, you may have a hard time opening a checking account with Capital One. However, you may still be able to open a savings account if you’re declined for a checking account.
Additionally, you must be a paperless customer to use any of its 360 banking products. If you prefer to handle all your banking under one company, from mortgages to student loans, consider an alternative option, as Capital One focuses heavily on its core products:; credit cards, checking and savings accounts, and business or commercial banking.
Pros
Cons
No monthly fees or minimum deposits on checking and savings accounts
Those with poor or limited checking account history might be declined for checking account approval
Offers Kids Savings Accounts, which allow for automatic sweeping of their allowance
Physical branch locations are limited and are predominantly available in metropolitan areas
Make deposits right from your mobile phone
Outgoing wire fees are on the higher end
Capital One 360 rates and products
Capital One 360 offers a variety of products, including high-yield savings accounts, checking accounts, and CDs. It also offers teen checking accounts and kids’ savings accounts, which is ideal for teaching children the value of money management. Here are your options.
Checking accounts
Capital One offers a free checking account, although it doesn’t offer an account opening bonus. You won’t pay a monthly fee nor will you pay any overdraft fees. Like many free checking accounts, you also aren’t required to keep a minimum amount in your account to avoid fees.
Capital One 360 checking account features
Account opening bonus
None
Minimum opening deposit
$0*
Monthly fees
$0
Overdraft fee
$0
Top APY
0.10%
Free check
First 50-count checkbook free; subsequent orders vary in price
Mobile deposit
Yes
Types of checking accounts available
360 Checking, MONEY Teen Checking
Domestic wire transfer
$30
Cashier’s check purchased at a Capital One branch
$10
Cashier’s check purchased online with expedited delivery
$20
Last updated: Feb. 14, 2024 *For your account to be considered “open,” you must deposit at least 1 cent, although you don’t need to maintain this balance to keep the account open.
Savings accounts
A high-yield savings account can help you earn a higher APY on the money in your account and typically is offered by online-only banks. Capital One 360 is no different, offering up to 4.35% APY, with no minimum requirement to earn interest. Compare this rate against current high-yield savings accounts.
Capital One 360 savings account features
Minimum opening deposit
$0
Monthly fees
$0
Top APY
4.35%
Minimum balance to earn interest
1 cent
Types of savings accounts available
360 Performance Savings, Kids Savings Account
Cashier’s check purchased online with expedited delivery
$20
Last updated: February 14, 2024
Capital One 360 bank savings rates compared to current top rates*
While Capital One 360 is a great option, there are some banks may offer features that are more valuable to you. Compare the rates above to this list of competitors:
Certificates of deposit
A CD is a type of savings account that holds your money for a specified period of time in exchange for an APY typically higher than what you’d find in a traditional savings account. This is because, in exchange for a higher APY, you’re tying up that money for a specific time frame, known as a term. If you take your money out before the specified term, you’ll usually pay an early withdrawal penalty.
Your CD will renew automatically after 10 days of maturity if you haven’t redeemed it
Last updated: February 14, 2024
Capital One 360 CD rates
Term length
APY
6-month CD
4.35%
9-month CD
4.35%
10-month CD
4.35%
11-month CD
4.50%
12-month CD
5.00%
14-month CD
5.10%
18-month CD
4.70%
24-month CD
4.30%
30-month CD
4.10%
36-month CD
4.10%
48-month CD
4.05%
60-month CD
4.00%
Available term lengths and APYs are subject to change at the institution’s discretion. Please visit Capital One for the most current rates & term lengths.
Compare more CD rates:
Other services Capital One offers
Capital One offers many products and services for its customers. These include:
Loans: While it no longer offers mortgages, you can apply for pre-approval for auto loans online.
Business and commercial services: Whether you need a business loan or commercial funding, there are several options available to you.
CreditWise: Whether you’re building your credit or looking to maintain it, CreditWise helps you monitor your credit and provides tips to help it grow.
Capital One Shopping: Through its browser extension and mobile app, it will apply coupons at checkout automatically. You can also earn cash back for purchases.
Online banking
While you can open an account through a local branch, banking online with Capital One is easy. Each of its 360 products is exclusively online and requires you to sign up for paperless options. However, if you prefer to do all your banking in one place, from student loans to mortgages and everything in between, there are other online banks and credit unions that can help meet that need.
The Capital One 360 platform and customer support
Customers can access Capital One 360 customer support through its mobile app, where you can speak with its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot named Eno. However, for this review, we attempted to speak with Eno to ask what its customer support hours are. It gave us a line about there being long wait times for calls because of the COVID-19 pandemic and suggested other chat topics for us. When told that this wasn’t what we asked, it then gave an option to connect with a representative. When clicking that button, it took us to our mobile browser, which gave a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and phone numbers to call.
It lists no hours of operation for credit card inquiries, although it does list hours for banking inquiries: live support is available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern time.
Is Capital One secure?
On July 19, 2019, Capital One discovered a data breach impacting 100 million individuals in the United States and 6 million individuals in Canada as well as small businesses who applied for credit card products from 2005 through 2019. This compromised approximately 140,000 Social Security numbers and 80,000 bank account numbers. For its Canadian customers, 1 million Social Insurance Numbers were compromised.
A class action lawsuit awarded a $190 million settlement for this breach.
Capital One user reviews
Customer reviews of Capital One and its products are generally positive, with many commenters stating they appreciate its high-yield savings account APYs, no monthly fees or minimums, access to fee-free ATMs, early paycheck access, and no foreign transaction fees. However, some find the lack of physical locations to be cumbersome, especially when the need for depositing cash comes up. To do so, they must go to Walgreens or CVS. Additionally, some customers prefer to have all their banking products under one roof, which can’t be done with Capital One as it doesn’t offer mortgages, retirement accounts, or student loan products.
Compare Capital One 360 alternatives
Is Capital One 360 right for you?
Capital One 360 is best for users comfortable with online banking, drawn to fee-free accounts, and interested in high-yield savings and competitive CD rates. It may not suit those who prefer in-person banking or deposit cash frequently due to limited physical branches. Additionally, if you need student loans, mortgages, or retirement accounts, consider an alternative option.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Capital One and 360?
Capital One is the larger financial institution responsible for traditional branch banking and credit products, whereas 360 is the online banking arm of Capital One, offering high-yield checking and savings account products.
Is it safe to put money into Capital One 360?
Capital One 360 offers the same protections you’ll find banking at a traditional branch: up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insurance.
How much can I withdraw at an ATM from my Capital One account?
For 360 Checking accounts, you can withdraw $1,000 per day. For non-360 accounts, the limit is $600 per day.
In 2021, the chief executive officers at large and regional U.S. banks got a median pay raise of 21.5%. The following year, bank CEO pay climbed by 7%.
It’s still too early to say what the industrywide trend was last year, when banks navigated a 10-week-long crisis. Many lenders, including Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, have yet to file the relevant disclosures on executive compensation.
But in recent weeks, five large U.S. banks have said how much money their CEOs were paid last year. Their disclosures shed early light on how the compensation committees of bank boards made pay decisions at the end of a tumultuous year.
What follows is a look at how much the CEOs of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley and Capital One Financial were paid in 2023, based on the banks’ own reporting and an analysis by the consulting firm Compensation Advisory Partners.
The CEOs who got the biggest raises are listed first.
Banks are identifying uses for generative AI and finding ways to make it effective and responsible. According to a Dec. 11 report by consulting giant EY, 100% of respondents said they are either already using or plan to use generative AI within their institutions. The report surveyed 300 executive directors, managing directors or higher at […]
Capital One is offering a signup bonus of up to $3,000 signup bonus on their business Spark Cash Plus card, as follows:
$1,500 once you spend $20,000 in the first 3 months.
An additional $1,500 once you spend $100,000 in the first 6 months.
Card Details
$150 annual fee not waived
Card earns 2% cash back on all purchases
Earn an annual $200 cash bonus every year you spend $200,000 or more
Card earns cashback; if you have a different points-earning Capital One card (such as the Venture or Spark Miles), you’ll be able to transfer over the cash back into miles which could be more valuable
Our Verdict
Both of these tiers might make sense for someone with a lot of unbonused spend. The lower tier is a really nice deal for cashback – you’ll get 9.5% cashback on $20,000 in spend. This is better than prior offers we’ve seen. Personally I can’t do the $100k tier, but I’m going to try getting approved and doing the $20k spend tier. (In the past I haven’t had great luck getting approved with Capital One. 🙁 )
This is a roundup of news and other interesting pieces that I’ve come across over the last few days. I thought they are worth sharing so I hope you enjoy reading them.
Maker of popular gift cards sued over ‘card draining’
A Georgia-based company that makes many popular gift cards faces a lawsuit in California alleging it failed to take precautions to prevent scammers from draining gift cards of their value – a scam that experts say is common. ➡️ Read more
Capital One Hit with Class Action Over Deceptive Credit Card Bonuses
The 18-page lawsuit says that since at least 2019, Capital One Financial Corporation and Virginia-based bank Capital One, National Association have “consistently misrepresented” to consumers that they would receive a sign-up bonus ranging from $150 to $500 if they applied for a Quicksilver credit card or SavorOne Rewards credit card at an “excellent” credit level or through a targeted offer and subsequently spent a certain amount within a specified time period. ➡️ Read more
Goldman Sachs faces rocky exit from Apple credit card partnership
In searching for a buyer for its share of the partnership, Goldman will face pressure from bidders to reduce the value of its stake in order to make the price more attractive, according to two sources familiar with the matter who declined to be identified discussing potential talks. ➡️ Read more
Omni Hotels Moves to a Revenue-Based Program
In a first for a hotel program, Omni Hotels announced that its loyalty program, Omni Select Guest, is going revenue-based starting in 2024. The move will make the new Omni Select Guest the first revenue-based hotel program. So, what will this new revenue-based program look like, and how does it stack up compared to traditional ones. ➡️ Read more
How to use Awayz to improve your hotel award searches
Awayz is a tool that helps travelers find hotels they can book with points in specific destinations. The tool also helps travelers decide when to redeem points and when to book a paid rate for a specific stay. Awayz retrieves live award availability and rates so travelers can compare their options without needing to individually search with each hotel loyalty program. Finally, Awayz also offers the option to set award availability alerts if a hotel you want to book on specific dates isn’t currently bookable with points. ➡️ Read more
Guru’s Wrap-up
Let me know if you enjoyed these articles and comment with any opinions you might have. You can also share any other interesting articles about deals, travel, credit cards and more.
With Veterans Day falling on a Saturday this year, some banks won’t be open on Friday and others will be closed on Saturday in observance of the federal holiday that honors Americans who served in the military. Post offices will be closed for the holiday, but stock markets will operate normally.
Are banks open today or on Veterans Day?
Capital One branches are observing Veterans Day on Friday and will be open for their normal hours on Saturday, according to a spokesperson.
Bank of America, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank are among the banks that are open for normal hours Friday but will be closed Saturday for the holiday, according to representatives for each institution.
Customers can check with their bank’s website to find operating hours for local branches.
Is the stock market open today?
The Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange are closed on Saturdays. The markets opened for trading as usual Friday morning.
Later this month, the markets will be closed for Thanksgiving, which falls on Nov. 23 this year. The markets will also close early on Black Friday, which is on Nov. 24.
Is the post office closed today?
The U.S. Postal Service will operate normally on Friday, according to a spokesperson. On Saturday, post offices will be closed, and regular mail won’t be delivered.
Express mail will still be delivered on Saturday. Regular mail service will resume on Monday.
FedEx offices will be open on Friday and Saturday, but on Friday, its express service will have early on-call pickups in some areas and its ground economy deliveries may be delayed because of the Postal Service’s observance of the holiday. On Saturday, its ground and ground economy services will be closed.
UPS stores will also be open on both days. Some deliveries will be delayed due to the Postal Service holiday.
Capital One Lawsuit Over Deceptive Interest Rates Practices
Capital One is facing a lawsuit that claims the company mislead customers about the interest rates on their accounts. The plaintiffs argue that rather than increasing rates on its longstanding 360 Savings account, Capital One introduced a new high-yield account called the 360 Performance Savings.
The lawsuit says the move lead to significant losses for account holders since September 2019, especially following the Federal Reserve’s swift interest rate hikes in March 2022.
Existing 360 Savings customers who would want to take advantage of higher yields in the current higher-rate environment would have to open a 360 Performance Savings account, according to the lawsuit.
That’s what I did. I have both accounts myself, and I opened the new 360 Performance Savings when the offered one of the frequent signup bonuses. Currently the 360 Savings account earns only 0.30% APY, while the 360 Performance Savings offers 4.30% APY. That’s a huge difference.
“Capital One’s conduct caused its 360 Savings account holders to lose millions of dollars of interest in the aggregate since September 2019, and especially since interest rates began rising rapidly in March of 2022,” the lawsuit states.
“There were, and are, no material differences between these two accounts other than the interest rate,” lawyers for the plaintiffs wrote. “Capital One did not notify its 360 Savings account holders that the 360 Performance Savings account was available, that 360 Performance Savings was, in fact, a different account and not just another name for the 360 Savings account, or that 360 Performance Savings paid a higher rate of interest.”
Plaintiffs argue that Capital One breached its contract with 360 Savings customers, saying that even though the bank had the discretion to establish the interest rate it paid, it did not engage in good faith and fair dealing. The lawsuit also alleges that Capital One violated certain state laws in Illinois, Virginia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, which deal with consumer protection and deceptive business practices. It seeks monetary damages plus an end to Capital One’s alleged misconduct, such as through an order that the bank convert all 360 Savings accounts to 360 Performance Savings accounts.
Capital One Financial Corp headquarters in McLean, Virginia.
Win McNamee/Photographer: Win McNamee/Getty
(Bloomberg) –Capital One Financial Corp. is seeking to sell more New York commercial real estate debt as property values fall.
The McLean, Virginia-based bank is accepting bids for loans totaling nearly $200 million, which includes debt backed by offices and apartments, according to marketing materials seen by Bloomberg News.
Capital One has hired brokerage Jones Lang Lasalle Inc. to sell a $120 million non-performing loan backed by five office buildings in the NoMad neighborhood of New York City. The loan was originated in 2019 and is in default for failure to pay the principal balance in May.
The bank is also selling a nearly $71 million portfolio consisting of nine performing loans backed by pre-war mixed-use properties in Manhattan, with ground-floor retail and apartments. The apartments and retail space were 92% and 67% occupied, respectively, as of July, and the loan is maturing next year. The deal is being offered at a slight discount, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be named citing private information.
A spokesperson for JLL had no immediate comment. A representative for Capital One didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.
Banks have been working to sell portfolios of commercial-property debt as they seek to manage their exposure to the sector. Soaring borrowing costs have weighed on valuations, with commercial real estate prices slumping 16% in September from a peak in March 2022, according to real estate analytics firm Green Street.
Many loans that received short-term extensions post-Covid are now starting to mature and lenders are growing increasingly wary of potential defaults. Even the biggest landlords, from Blackstone Inc. to Brookfield Asset Management Ltd., have started to walk away from properties.
Some lenders have been willing to accept discounts and boost incentives to reduce their exposure. Earlier this year, Capital One sold an office-loan portfolio to Fortress Investment Group.
Capital One’s technological advances allowed the bank to expand underwriting, modeling and marketing in the third quarter of 2023. “Our modern technology capabilities are generating an expanding set of opportunities across our businesses,” Chief Executive Richard Fairbank said during the bank’s Q3 earnings call Thursday. For example, during the quarter the bank used machine learning […]
Capital One continued to modernize its technology infrastructure in the second quarter. “Our investments to build and leverage a modern technology infrastructure are expanding our opportunities and driving value creation over the long-term,” Chief Executive Richard Fairbank said in today’s earnings release. BY THE NUMBERS: The $471 billion bank reported in Q2: Communications and data […]
Capital One acquired luxury concierge service Velocity Black in a deal announced June 1 as the credit card giant seeks to bolster the perks offered to its customers. Terms of the deal were not made public. Founded in 2014, Velocity Black markets itself as an exclusive subscription service that offers members guidance on topics from […]
Capital One looked to technology to help navigate economic uncertainty as it invested in machine learning during the first quarter. The $471 billion bank saw a 3% year-over-year increase in communications and data processing to $350 million as the bank used machine learning (ML) to assist in making business decisions based on market sentiment, Capital […]
Proper data management is something all financial institutions strive for, but it is not easily achieved due to data siloes and drift. While the process of organizing and gathering the right data can set banks apart from their competitors, using the right tools to accomplish this is critical, and something all FIs need to […]
Capital One reported higher technology-related expenses for the fourth quarter despite reducing its tech workforce as the company “continues to invest in its retail banking business,” Chief Executive Richard Fairbank said during Tuesday’s Q4 earnings call. WHY IT MATTERS: The $455 billion bank reported a 9% year-over-year increase in total non-interest expenses to $5 billion […]
Capital One Financial Corp. eliminated hundreds of technology positions this week, the result of the credit-card giant spending years investing in systems meant to improve its efficiency. More than 1,100 workers were affected, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing a private matter. Those employees have been […]
