Way back when I wrote about my favorite free banking which was WaMu. I also mentioned how JP Morgan Chase basically ripped me off with fees. I to this day hate them for so easily putting into practice a policy of ripping people off. So guess what happened since then? WaMu went bankrupt due to getting way overextended with NorthWest Mortgages, and guess who swooped in and bought them? JP Morgan Chase. I cried myself to sleep for weeks because I knew if Chase now had control over my WaMu account is was only a matter of time before they start charging me money to let others borrow my money.

Today something great and something horrible happened within 5 minutes of each other. I got a letter from Chase and opened it in front of my computer as i am always prepared for the worst when dealing with scum like that. So I quickly scanned the friendly letter and almost exploded, it was a very polite letter happily informing me that my 1.9% APR on my credit card originally gotten from WaMu is from now on going to be 29.99%. That is not a typo.

ally bank

One of the main reasons I wanted to share this on my blog is because take a look at that website! Someone sure knows how to make money, there is alot to admire about this site for you marketers and developers alike. But seriously, getting a money-market account with no minimums, no monthly fees, no direct-deposit requirements, and none of all those other made-up pirate words is pretty unheard of. If I was a journalist I would want to know who it is that is behind this. But knowing how the banking industry is it's probably their idea of a "lead-generating-tool" that they can later just buy outright and stick it to all the "leads". It's basically the same setup as PayPal and their optional money market account that I use, except unlike paypal you can send and receive money without them taking a big chunk. And who ever heard of such a thing as a no-penalty CD that doesn't have hidden costs?

Have you heard congress wants to make it legally required to inform your blog readers if you are getting paid to promote a product?
Well don't worry about me, I never have been paid and I literally just opened my account 20 minutes ago. I'm just anal about not having to pay a bank to let them lend it to others. ally vs Chase is the same thing as Open Source vs Microsoft.

Any other ideas?

Update: Best Free Online Banking originally appeared on AskApache.com

I've spent a lot of time over the past 10 years managing my money online, and I want to let you all know my two favorite free online banks, Etrade and WaMu.

ETRADE

Etrade offers an incredible Savings Account, with no fees and no minimums, and the customer support is stellar. Etrade also offers a free Checking account, and you get a debit card with that, for free.

Here is a look at the default view when you log in to Etrade. Some of my favorite places are the retirement areas, where you can learn about how to retire. They also have a TON of great information for a lot of other subjects a Web Professional should know all about, credit score, home mortgages, etc..

WaMu

WaMu is just fantastic. I'm sure you've seen their ad campaign talking about them being a different kind of bank. Well, they certainly are. They offer a great free savings account with huge interest rates, no monthly fees or any kind of fees, etc.. They also offer a free checking account that comes with a debit card. I have both.

Here is the default view when you login to WaMu, its really the best online banking interface I have ever seen.

Recommendations

I recommend signing up for a checking and savings account with both of these great banks, and if you like to play the market, go ahead and get an online brokerage account with Etrade. Happy Hunting! Etrade and WaMu

Best Free Online Banking for Web Professionals originally appeared on AskApache.com