Apple has once again adjusted the interest rate on its high-yield savings account, lowering it from 4.4% to 4.25%. This change, effective immediately, comes shortly after the Federal Reserve's decision to cut its key interest rate by a significant half a percentage point. This marks the second time this year that Apple has reduced the interest rate on its savings account.
Apple's savings account, launched in April 2023 in partnership with Goldman Sachs, initially offered an annual percentage yield (APY) of 4.15 percent. The rate has fluctuated since then, reaching a peak of 4.5% before being lowered to 4.4 percent in April 2024 and then knocked down to 4.25 percent. This recent adjustment is likely based on the broader economic landscape, particularly the Federal Reserve's recent aggressive rate cut to cushion the economy from a potential slowdown. Apple Card users were notified of the interest rate change through push notifications on Tuesday evening.
The savings account is exclusive to U.S. residents 18 years old and above and has no fees, minimum deposits, or balance requirements. The app is managed through the iPhone's Wallet app, which is likely how the push notifications were sent out.
The percentage drop may seem insignificant, but even 0.1 percent can make a huge difference when it comes to interest. Apple recently raised the maximum balance to $1,000,000, which shows it's ready to provide services to high-value savers. However, 0.1 percent of a million dollars is a thousand dollars, so it's not much comparatively, but as the maximum grows, that percentage will mean a lot more.
Even with the interest rate cut and some outages, Apple is still doing well in the market. There were reports that Apple was a bit nervous after the total deposits passed 10 billion dollars, but this interest drop seems more like a reaction to the Federal Reserve than any issues coming from the company.
Source: MacRumors