Low Risk, Capital Guaranteed Options: Best Fixed Deposit Rates in Singapore (2020)

There’re a lot of places to park your money.

And sometimes, you just have a huge amount of money lying around that you don’t really wanna risk investing.

After all, there’s no such thing as a guarantee when it comes to investments.

All you want is a simple, low risk, capital guaranteed option.

Where you can leave your money, forget about it, and come back later to collect the interest.

Your best bet?

Fixed deposits.

An extremely low-risk way to grow your money without losing your capital.

Sounds good?

Let’s find out what are the highest fixed deposit interest rates, shall we?

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TL;DR: What Are the Highest Fixed Deposit Interest Rates in Singapore (2020)?

Note: the fixed deposit interest rates listed here promotional rates which change monthly.

Some might not even have a specific expiry date…

The banks will just advertise it as “for a limited time only” to feed your FOMO mentality.

And can change it anytime.

Most of the time, the higher fixed deposit interest rates are only for a bank’s premium customers.

Or if you have a huge amount of money, usually $20,000 and above, to commit.

So if you have a lot of assets with a particular bank, make sure to speak with your relationship manager to find out what are the ‘special’ rates only available to you.

Alternatively, higher fixed deposit interest rates are also available for foreign currencies (like USD).

So that’s something else to consider if you, for some reason, have huge sums of foreign currency just lying around.

Best Fixed Deposit Promotions For Deposits Below $10,000

Overall, DBS has the best option with a minimum deposit of $1,000, for at least 18 months to secure an interest rate of 1.30% p.a.

That’s not too bad since you’re not locking your money up for too long.

Even if you went with a shorter tenor of 10 to 11 months, you’d still get 1.10% p.a.

Best Fixed Deposit Promotions For Deposits From $20,000 and Above

If you’ve got $25,000 to spare.

Maybank is the best option but you’ll need to commit for at least 36 months to secure an interest rate of 1.50% p.a.

3 years is a pretty long time.

And if you’re considering that time frame, you might want to look at endowment plans if you’re for higher interest rates (plus a little insurance on the side).

Alternatively, for a $20,000 deposit, Hong Leong Finance gives you 0.85% (12 months) and 0.90% (13 months) p.a..

But frankly, if you’re not getting at least 1.00% p.a. for your fixed deposit, I would seriously consider alternatives.

Are There Better Alternatives?

If you want to earn more than what the fixed deposits are giving you, I’d consider these alternatives too.

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Why Even Consider Fixed Deposits?

I know what you’re thinking.

There’re so many financial instruments out there… why choose fixed deposits when you can only get so little back?

I mean, most fixed deposit board rates are usually under 1.00% p.a.

But given the low-interest-rate environment that we’re in.

Where banks are slashing the interest of their high-interest savings account (the ones which require you to credit your salary, spend a certain amount, and buy insurance or investment products).

It makes more sense to look at alternatives which don’t require you to do so much just to get so little.

And should at least give you more than the paltry 0.05% which your regular savings account does.

In general, fixed deposits:

• are virtually risk-free and give guaranteed returns
• are fuss-free (no need to deposit fresh funds or buy insurance and investment products)
• can be a low-risk component of your investment portfolio
• pay you a fixed rate of interest (it doesn’t change once you’re locked in)
• pay an interest rate that is higher than a regular savings account (0.05% per annum)

Also… contrary to what many people think.

Fixed deposits are actually highly liquid.

Once you put your money in, you can withdraw your money anytime.

HOWEVER, there’s a catch.

There may be early withdrawal clauses that require you to pay a certain administrative fee.

And you might get paid less interest or lose it altogether.

So before you decide to squirrel money away in a fixed deposit account.

Make sure that you can afford to put it aside for the stipulated amount of time.

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CIMB Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Valid till further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice

Citibank Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Unfortunately, Citibank’s time deposits are bundled with an insurance or investment component.

So if you’re looking for a traditional, fuss-free fixed deposit option, you’re gonna need to look elsewhere.

DBS Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Rates are effective 25 September 2020 till further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice

Hong Leong Finance Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Limited time only
• For premature withdrawal, interest will be payable @ 0.10% p.a. on completed quarter(s) and a fee of $50 applies

HSBC Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Valid until 31 October 2020
• The minimum and maximum placement amounts are $30,000 and $1,200,000 respectively

ICBC Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Valid until further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice

Maybank Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Minimum age 16 years old
• Valid until further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice

OCBC Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Above 18 years old
• Valid until further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice
• Minimum placement of $20,000
• Not available for placements via Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) funds

RHB Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Minimum 18 years old
• Valid until further notice
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice
• Minimum placement of $1,000 for 3 months

Standard Chartered Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Valid until 12 October 2020
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice
• Minimum placement of $25,000 for 6 months

UOB Fixed Deposit Promotion Interest Rates

Terms & Conditions:

• Valid until 31 October 2020
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice
• Minimum placement of $20,000 for 10 months