Considering BofA Premium Rewards

[FieryDance]

There is a new $900 promo if anyone is interested.  I will be doing it.  

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[VPExecutive]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

BofA still hasn't mailed me my checking account number. I was approved for the account Sept 23. The ME rep said I'd get free trades right away but the website is still trying to charge me. I wouldn't be surprised if they charge me a low-balance fee because they won't give me the information to actually link my accounts.

Now Schwab is eliminating most fees. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191001005489/en/Conjunction-Chuck-Schwab's-New-Book-%22Inve...

So I don't have to suffer unreliable service and an unintuitive website for free trades. BofA's free trade plan seems to be not about giving customers something of value, but realizing that their platform simply isn't as good as others. I don't see how anyone who has tried Fidelity or Schwab would pay a higher price for Merrill Edge.

Maybe I'll keep $100k for the Premium Rewards card, and $200k long enough for $600, but so far this has not been pleasant. I'd be reluctant to keep $500k in the account for 9 months for the full $1500.

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Yup, Schwab is the way to go if you have investments and want banking but don't qualify for NFCU (but even then, Schwab beats NFCU in many ways).

Hard to beat checking with a 0.20% interest rate (although that rate has done down significantly), unlimited ATM rebates worldwide, no bank ATM fees, no stop check fees, no foreign transaction fees, free overdraft protection transfers, 24/7 exceptional customer service, and no minimum balance required. Citi won't even give people with $199,000 in deposits ATM rebates.

My only question is... How does Schwab make money now? Certainly eliminating stock fees is a large drain on their revenue and unlimited ATM fee rebates, interest, etc., is all very expensive.  

[wasCB14]

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@VPExecutive wrote:

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Yup, Schwab is the way to go if you have investments and want banking but don't qualify for NFCU (but even then, Schwab beats NFCU in many ways).

Hard to beat checking with a 0.20% interest rate (although that rate has done down significantly), unlimited ATM rebates worldwide, no bank ATM fees, no stop check fees, no foreign transaction fees, free overdraft protection transfers, 24/7 exceptional customer service, and no minimum balance required. Citi won't even give people with $199,000 in deposits ATM rebates.

My only question is... How does Schwab make money now? Certainly eliminating stock fees is a large drain on their revenue and unlimited ATM fee rebates, interest, etc., is all very expensive.  

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InvestmentNews says commissions were only 4% of revenue. Their "core" ETF fees are low enough they probably don't make much there.

My guess is they are going to try to make more from their advisement fees...human and robo...and push people towards the higher-fee set of products.