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Guide to Business Banking Rates and Quotes
Take advantage of the Web to shop for the best deals
By Meagan Francis
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Extremely
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When choosing a bank to do business with, you'll probably look at many factors — from monthly fees to the branch's hours and proximity to your office. But whether you're opening a simple checking account, looking for a loan, or investing, you'll want to check out interest rates before you settle on a financial institution. Interest rates can affect your business's bottom line in a variety of ways: - The amount of interest you can earn through your business's checking or savings account,
- The amount of interest your business can earn through investments like certificates of deposit (CDs) and money-market accounts, and
- The amount of interest you'll pay on loans or lines of credit to start or grow your business.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
 Compare account rates online
Interest rates on checking accounts, CDs, money market accounts and more can vary even in the same geographical area. Find out all your options by calling around or visiting an online search before you decide which financial institution should get your business.
I recommend: Bankrate.com's Small Business section features a database with rates on checking and high-yield accounts nationwide.
Use an online bank
Financial institutions that do their business online often have lower overhead than brick-and-mortar banks, meaning they can pass their savings on to you through higher interest rates.
I recommend: ING Direct offers several financial products, including CDs, savings accounts, and mutual funds, and is backed by the power of a major international financial institution.
Shop for low-cost credit
Even a small difference in your business credit or loan interest rate can add up to a lot over the course of the loan. Search carefully for the best terms before you choose a lender.
I recommend: LendingTree.com allows you to search for the best rates on business lines of credit, credit cards, and other financing.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Whether you're choosing a line of credit or a savings account, check the fine print for fees and other unwelcome surprises.
- Interest rates are often negotiable, particularly if the bank believes it will lose your business otherwise.
- Talk to your banker periodically to make sure you're still getting the best deal possible for your business. As the market fluctuates and your business grows, you may find yourself in a position to ask for better rates or take advantage of special offers.
- Keep an eye on the competition. Shop around periodically to make sure your financial institution is still giving you the best possible rates.
The official source of Business Banking Rates and Quotes is the Bank Rates page at Business.com
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This bank has a good directory page of various rates. In addition, there are links to various tools such as currency converters.
The small business site for a large bank organized as a directory where one can find rates on any of their instruments.
A small business site of a popular bank that has investment products and borrowing links.
This site lists all savings and borrowing products from this bank, customized to the state level.
The site of a major bank, this page lists small business credits, loans and investments.
This site has all lending and borrowing products for businesses from HSBC.
Bank of America's page that lists small business credits, loans and investments.
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 Best Sites to Learn More | Back to top |
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A finance site that lists all the prevailing bank rates. This site also has many useful topical articles and finance vendor links.
This page gives rates and links to many topics and articles relevant to the current lending environment.
A site that offers real time quotes on the most popular banking rates.
The CNN site shows major rates, and gives the user the ability to search by zip code to localize the bank rates.
A page showing key interest rates from the U.S. monetary policy authority.
A credit union that provides a page with rates, including everything from mortgages to government paper.
This page has many common rates listed including foreign currency. In addition, there are many relevant financial topics that the user can select for more information.
A site that shows current rates, and news referring to the latest changes in bank rates.
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 Best Blogs and Forums | Back to top |
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A forum discussing all things money and banking.
This large forum has many categories including such categories as "best CD rates" and "money market rates".
A forum that has much communications traffic on prevailing rates and bank comparison shopping.
A blog where the author looks nationally for the best rates and publishes them on his site.
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