CIT Bank Review 2024: High Yield Online Banking Option

CIT Bank is an online bank that offers a full suite of deposit products – checking, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit (CDs). They are a no-fee bank that offers some of the highest interest rates available on savings products, as well as some of the most innovative CDs from any bank.

At a Glance

• Platinum Savings account earns 4.70% APY if your balance is over $5,000
• Savings Connect account earns 4.35% APY on all balances.
• Minimum opening deposit of $100
• Checking account pays interest
• No monthly fees
• No ATM network, but it will reimburse up to $30 in ATM fees per month.

Who Should Use CIT Bank

Those who have at least $5,000 to put in their savings account will be pleased with the APY on the Platinum Savings, as it’s very competitive. The APY on the Savings Connect is a bit lower, but still strong on lower balances.

CIT Bank is also not connected to an ATM network, so the checking account is best for those who rarely use an ATM. The bank does not charge ATM fees and will reimburse up to $30 of other network’s fees per month. Therefore, occasional ATM is fine, but if you are a heavy user of ATMs CIT’s checking is likely not for you.

CIT Alternatives

Savings APY	4.00% APY	4.30% APY	4.00% APY
Checking APY	1.10% APY	N/A	0.10% APY
Monthly fees	$0	$0	$0
	Learn more	Learn more	Learn more

They were acquired by First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company in a merger with the merger completed on January 4th, 2022 but still operate as CIT Bank.

This is an online bank that, and like every bank we review, is covered by FDIC insurance (FDIC #11063) of up to $250,000 per depositor. While they don’t offer credit cards, auto loans, or even IRA accounts, but it does have a full range of mortgage products, as well as small business financing programs.

CIT Bank offers an eChecking account, a high yield money market, multiple savings accounts, and several high-yield CD products. Each of these products are available for custodial accounts. Note that interest on all deposit products accrues daily and is credited monthly:

eChecking

This checking account has a $100 minimum and pays out 0.10% APY on balances under $25,000 and just 0.25% APY on balances with over $25,000. There are also very few fees, including no monthly fee.

CIT Bank is one of the few online banks that doesn’t work with an ATM network but you get reimbursed $30 in ATM fees charged by other banks each month.

Money Market

This account is currently paying a rate of 1.55% APY on all balances with no monthly fees and requires just $100 to open.

This money market account is one of the best money market accounts you can get because you earn the interest rate regardless of your balance. Most money market accounts require you to meet a minimum balance before they will pay you the high rate. This account only requires you to open it with $100 and then you earn the best rate possible.

This account doesn’t come with checks or debit card. It works like a savings account and you can transfer funds in and out electronically.

Platinum Savings

With the Platinum Savings account, you can earn up to 4.70% APY if your balance is $5,000 or more. You’ll only earn 0.25% if your balance is under $5,000.

There are no monthly fees, and you must deposit $100 to open the account.

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Savings Connect

The Savings Connect account earns 4.35% APY on all balances. The minimum to open the account is $100, and there are no maintenance fees.

If you open a CIT Bank account and are deciding between the different “savings” accounts – you want the Savings Connect. If you typically maintain a balance of under $5,000. Otherwise, you can earn a bit more with the Platinum Savings.

Savings Builder

The base savings builder interest rate is 1.00% APY with a $100 minimum to open. If your daily balance is under $25,000, you earn 4.70% APY.

However, if your daily balance is under $25,000 and you have a monthly deposit of $100 or more, OR you balance is above $25,000 you earn 1.00% APY. These rates are as of 11/1/2024.

CDs

Term CDs. Requires a minimum initial deposit of $1,000, with terms running from 6 months to five years.

Rates are tiered, based on the term of the certificate:

No-Penalty CD. This is an 11-Month CD, currently paying up to 3.50% APY on all balances, with a minimum opening deposit of $1,000. The major feature of this CD is that you can withdraw funds penalty-free, any time after the first six days after the start of the certificate.

Jumbo CDs. These CDs require a minimum investment of $100,000 and offer rates based on the term, anywhere from two to five years.

Early Withdrawal Penalties on CDs are as follows:

• Terms up to 1 year – 3 months interest on the amount withdrawn
• Terms more than 1 year up to 3 years – 6 months interest on the amount withdrawn
• Terms more than 3 years – 12 months interest on the amount withdrawn

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Fees

Fees that may apply under certain circumstances include:

• Outgoing wire transfers for accounts with an average daily balance of less than $25,000: $10 per transfer
• Money market account overdraft fee: $25
• Money market account excessive transactions fee (more than 6 withdrawals per statement cycle): $10 per transaction, subject to a monthly cap of $50
• Money market account Bill Pay (which is currently unavailable) stop payment: $30 per check

Customer Service

Customer service is available 24 hours a day, seven days per week for both Online Banking and Mobile Banking by email or by Automated Telephone Banking.

Live phone contact is available (855-462-2652) during the following days and times (all times Eastern):

• Monday through Friday: 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM
• Saturday: 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
• Sunday: 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM

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CIT Bank Alternatives

Quontic Bank

Quontic Bank offers several attractive bank accounts, including two checking accounts, a high-yield savings, a money market account, and several CDs.

The high-yield savings account pays 4.00% APY with no monthly fees and a $100 minimum opening deposit.

The high-interest checking account earns up to 1.10% APY, but to earn this rate, you’ll need to make at least 10 debit card point-of-sale transactions of at least $10 per statement.

Go to Quontic Bank

Synchrony Bank

Synchrony Bank doesn’t have a checking account, but it does offer a savings account, money market account, and CDs.

The savings account earns 4.30% APY with no minimum deposit and no monthly fees. They money market and CDs also earn competitive interest rates with no minimum balance requirements.

Here’s our full Synchrony Bank review to learn more.

Go to Synchrony Bank

Ally Bank

Ally has several similar features to CIT. It offers an online checking account, a high-yield savings account, and several CDs. The savings account pays 4.00% APY and the CDs are competitive. Also, unlike CIT Bank, there are no minimum deposit requirements.

The checking account at Ally pays 0.25% interest on all balances and it’s part of the Allpoint and MoneyPass ATM networks. Plus, they will reimburse ATM fees up to $10 per statement.

Here’s our full Ally Bank review to learn more.

Go to Ally Bank

Summary

CIT Bank is a pure, online, no-fee bank that provides some of the very highest yielding savings products available with any bank. And high-yield accounts are available with initial deposits as low as $100. Since it doesn’t offer traditional banking services like credit cards and auto loans, it’s best used for its primary purpose only – a high yield online savings bank.

If you’d like more information, visit the CIT Bank website.