Northern Trust Visa Signature (and other banking products)

[nicsenn]

Hello!

First post here on MyFICO.

I'm interested in the Visa Signature offered by Northern Trust. I have no accounts with Northern Trust but would also look into banking with them if it was a requirement for the card. I'm curious if anyone can shed some light on the credit card itself? (I.e., annual fee, foreign transaction fee, how is the rewards program, etc.) Their site is hard to find information, and they really want prospective clients to visit their branches. While I live in Manhattan and understand why they do this, I can't typically go to their NYC office during business hours and they're closed on Saturdays. I'm hoping some other fols out there can give me a little more info before I try to make a special trip to their branch.

The only thing I've been able to find online regarding the Visa Signature and banking services is here: http://www-ac.northerntrust.com/content/media/attachment/data/fact_sheet/0706/document/Private_Banki... Do any of you have this credit card? And if not, do any of you bank with Northern Trust? I'm specifically interested in finding out more about their fee structures, benefits, etc. If I've read that PDF correctly, it looks like their debit card is similar to Charles Schwab's in that there are no foreign transaction fees and they waive ATM fees (at least up to $25/month). There is a lot of info on the site about their Anchor Account, but I believe there's a slew of other checking and savings accounts and I may not want to immediately move the initial $15K required for the Anchor Account if I can open one with a lower amount.

Sorry to make this such a long post, and I apologize if I've posted anything in the wrong category. I'm new at this and am just hoping to get a few questions answered if I can.

Thanks in advance for reading and replying!

[Anonymous]

Hi there!

While I do not personally have this card, there are a few things you should know and consider, as my family does have a relationship with Northern Trust.

-The card is actually not offered by Northern Trust, but by a partner (Elan Financial Services).

-You must have a relationship with Northern Trust (bank, securities, or asset management) to receive a Northern Trust branded credit card. You can't apply directly with Elan.

-The relationship minimums start a 2 MM USD and move up depending on the "tier" you fall into.

-The reason why they are a bit vague online is because they DO want you to visit a branch and speak to someone. They don't do retail banking; everything is handled by either a private banker or a relationship manager. Even if you had an existing relationship and wanted to open an additional checking/savings account, you would have to either visit a branch and have a banker fill out the application with you, or you would call your relationship manager and have him/her fill it out and have them send you the signature card. You wouldn't be able to do it over the phone or online.

-They recently changed the minimums (as of February 2016) for opening checking and savings accounts. It's now 25K flat for all accounts (ranging from the basic checking to Northern Anchor). However, that's the opening balance, not the minimum balance requirements. Theoretically you could deposit 25K upon opening and immediately withdraw it and you would still have the account serviced. The minimum balance ranges on the type of account you select and if you meet them, you'll be able to utilize the benefits associated with it as well as waive the monthly fee.

I hope this answers your question!

[Anonymous]

I do think it's nice that they have cards with lower limits available for my household staff