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23/09/2023
Rabobank scooped more award wins than any other provider of SMSF accounts in Mozo’s recent 2023 Awards, including Savings, High Interest Savings and Term Deposits.
With a large range of savings products available on the market, Rabobank provides genuine choice and flexibility for those wanting to maximise returns on their savings and investments.
From a pool of 44 Australian financial institutions Rabobank was recently named SMSF Savings Bank of the Year at the 2023 Mozo Experts Choice Awards, with the bank also taking out more award wins than any other provider of SMSF accounts.
Head of Rabobank Online Savings, Julie Blanchard said Mozo recognised the “exceptional value” of Rabobank’s SMSF product range – with award wins in the No Strings Savings, High Interest Savings and Term Deposit categories.
Rabobank scooped more award wins than any other provider of SMSF accounts in Mozo’s recent 2023 Awards, including Savings, High Interest Savings and Term Deposits.
With a large range of savings products available on the market, Rabobank provides genuine choice and flexibility for those wanting to maximise returns on their savings and investments.
From a pool of 44 Australian financial institutions Rabobank was recently named SMSF Savings Bank of the Year at the 2023 Mozo Experts Choice Awards, with the bank also taking out more award wins than any other provider of SMSF accounts.
Head of Rabobank Online Savings, Julie Blanchard said Mozo recognised the “exceptional value” of Rabobank’s SMSF product range – with award wins in the No Strings Savings, High Interest Savings and Term Deposit categories.
Rabobank, she said, was focused on providing accounts that not only provide good returns, but also a range of different savings products to meet customers’ savings objectives.
“It’s also a unique product offering refreshingly free from many conditional constraints.”
Continual saving without the catch
Julie explained that the Premium Saver enables a higher rate of interest for increasing your balance by at least $200 each month, reflective of the old ‘piggy bank’ style of saving.
“The key differentiator of Rabobank’s Premium Saver compared to similar products on the market is that if a customer doesn’t make the $200 increase, there’s not such a significant variance between our bonus rate and base rate,” Julie said.
“There’s not a huge difference if someone isn’t eligible for the maximum rate, which is quite unique – at Rabobank we want to encourage savings even if people can’t meet the conditions to earn the maximum rate.”
Looking long-term for higher rate
Taking advantage of the current high interest rate environment, Rabobank’s Term Deposits was a prudent option, and one which Julie said was particularly attractive for pre retirees or retirees who may want to use the returns from a term deposit to live off.
Term Deposits allow customers to lock in their savings and get a guaranteed return, and they can start from as little as $1,000, with terms from one month to five years.
“People can lock in for a range of shorter terms or look to lock away their funds for up to five years to take advantage of the higher interest rate environment and a longer-term Term Deposit enables them to elect to receive monthly interest, which can be used to support their living expenses.”
Uncomplicated savings
Another popular option was the High Interest Savings Account (HISA), enabling savers to get the most out of every dollar saved, without changing their everyday bank.
One of the best features of the HISA, Julie believes, is that it pays a competitive ongoing rate, with no withdrawal conditions – “You can throw money into it, and draw money out of it, and you’re not penalised with an interest rate reduction or a withdrawal fee.”
Starting with a higher introductory interest rate which applies to the first $250,000, then reverting to the ongoing standard rate after four months, she said the big differentiator between this account and those similar on the market is it’s easy to maintain the account.
Julie explains that while some savings accounts on the market had become quite convoluted, requiring transaction accounts and a minimum number of transactions per month, with the Rabobank HISA there are no requirements like this.
“You don’t have to increase your deposits on a monthly basis or open up a linked transaction account, or switch banks – you can keep your transaction accounts with Commonwealth, NAB or Westpac, and have your HISA account separate.”
Taking advantage of rate increases, with few restrictions
The Notice Saver is also a fuss-free product, and with no minimum contribution required and a variable interest rate, Julie said this was a product ideal for people who don’t need instant access to their savings.
“This is perfect for those keen to benefit from a higher rate of return, but are happy to wait 31, 60, or 90 days to access their money.”
As opposed to a fixed term deposit, whereby accounts can’t be increased or withdrawn without breaking the term deposit, Julie said of the Notice Saver, “You can increase your balance, and obviously receive interest rate changes when they move, but there’s no requirement to continue regular contributions, you just need to give notice when you want to take funds out.”
She said the Notice Saver represents a good option for those with a Self-Managed Super Fund.
“For people wanting to save for retirement, or leverage good rates of return on retirement income, having something like a Notice Saver as part of a hybrid range of investment options is a really attractive proposition.”
“A lot of our customers, particularly in the SMSF space have money spread across a number of products, a little in the HISA with no conditions so they can access cash any time or for an emergency, and if they want to lock a bit more away at a higher rate for a six months or 12 month longer term deposit, and then they can put some in Notice Saver and Premium Saver – with a hybrid option there’s a lot of opportunity that you can leverage.”
Saving with a greater purpose
As an agribusiness bank, Julie said customers could feel good about maximising their returns.
“Every dollar invested with Rabobank is being used for a greater purpose, with deposits going towards Rabobank’s proposition of funding local farmers and agricultural businesses to bring food to our tables.”
“Whether you’re a SMSF or an individual saver, all 100 percent of Rabobank savings go toward supporting Aussie farmers, so they can grow too.”
Valuable adviser relationships to benefit investors
Rabobank Advisers Services is a tailored Rabobank offering for those advisers looking to utilise good rates of return for their clients’ cash options.
“We have some really long-standing relationships. This service recognises the value of advisers within the wealth management industry, and ensures that they’re able to access our products in the most streamlined way possible.”
Again, Julie said Rabobank’s diverse range of cash offerings ensured people don’t have to “put all their eggs in one basket”, and provided an attractive alternative with the government guarantee of up to $250,000 per entity.
“We work closely with advisers who have large client portfolios and want to develop a long-term and strong relationship for their strategic cash management strategy, to help them support their clients to maximise their retirement wealth.” she said.
Julie encouraged advisers interested in having an established relationship for ongoing client management to contact the team via email adviserservices@rabobank.com
Disclaimer: Rabobank Australia Limited ABN 50 001 621 129 AFSL 234 700 is the issuer Rabobank Online Savings. Information provided is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider these factors along with the relevant terms and conditions, product disclosure statement and target market determination (available at www.rabobank.com.au, at Rabobank branches, or by calling 1300 30 30 33), and seek professional advice before making any financial or tax decisions.