In case you missed it, interest rates are up another 25 basis points.
The last few weeks have been relatively uneventful in the term deposit space, as banks waited to see the direction the RBA would take for May's monetary policy decision.
Some providers even started moving rates down, particularly longer terms (one year or longer), in anticipation that the cash rate would begin to decrease before too long.
With the cash rate will be raised for the eleventh time in twelve RBA meetings, it's likely that more banks will follow those who moved interest rates on term deposit accounts this week.
With the ACCC watching closely to make sure cash rate movements are passed on in full to savings accounts as well as home loans, hiking up term deposit rates could be a good opportunity for banks to demonstrate commitment to savers.
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Want to earn a fixed interest rate on your cash? The table below features term deposits with some of the highest interest rates on the market for a six-month term.
Judo Bank increase rates by up to 20 basis points
| Term length | Deposit size | Payment frequency | Interest rate (% point change) |
| Three months | $1,000-$999,999 | End of term | 4.25% p.a (+0.15) |
| Six months | $1,000-$999,999 | End of term | 4.60% p.a (+0.1) |
| Nine months | $1,000-$999,999 | End of term | 4.65% p.a (+0.15) |
| One year | $1,000-$999,999 | End of term | 4.75% p.a (+0.1) |
If you keep up to date with every one of these term deposit wraps (bless you), you'll have noticed fierce competition between several banks to offer the highest rate for six month and term deposit account.
Seemingly every week the likes of Macquarie or Beyond Bank would leapfrog one another to offer higher and higher rates, which savers would have relished.
This week, it's Judo Bank, one of the other usual suspects, which pushed up rates to market leading levels, eclipsing Bank of Sydney which previously held the market leading spot for both six months and one year, according to Savings.com.au market research.
Bank of Sydney reduce rates by 5 basis points
| Term length | Deposit size | Payment frequency | Interest rate (% point change) |
| Six months | $1,000-$500,000 | End of term | 4.50% p.a (-0.05) |
| Nine months | $1,000-$500,000 | End of term | 4.55% p.a (-0.05) |
| One year | $1,000-$500,000 | End of term | 4.65% p.a (-0.05) |
Bank of Sydney, which notably hiked up rates dramatically during April, has now slightly adjusted interest rates on term deposit products downwards, passing Judo going the other way.
The bank fired both barrels earlier in April, increasing rates in consecutive weeks to soar to the top of the term deposit arena.
Now though, in what seems like an amendment more than anything else, Bank of Sydney has slightly tempered rates.
It remains distinctly competitive, however.
Macquarie increases rates by up to 25 basis points
| Term length | Deposit size | Payment frequency | Interest rate (% point change) |
| Six months | $5,000-$1,000,000 | End of term | 4.35% p.a (+0.25) |
| Nine months | $5,000-$1,000,000 | End of term | 4.35% p.a (+0.25) |
| One year | $5,000-$1,000,000 | End of term | 4.40% p.a (+0.10) |
The largest bank to make moves this week was Macquarie, which has also been involved to some extent in the race to offer the highest interest rates.
In a fairly standard decision, Macquarie has elected to pass on the full cash rate increase to customers putting money away for six or nine months, though term deposit decisions are usually influenced by much more than just the cash rate.
One year terms only increased by 10 basis points, which is in tune with a broader pattern of banks 'front loading' and offering relatively higher rates on shorter terms.
Bank Australia increases rates by up to 60 basis points
| Term length | Deposit size | Payment frequency | Interest rate (% point change) |
| Three months | $5,000-$1,000,000 | End of term | 4.20% p.a (+0.6) |
| Six months | $5,000-$1,000,000 | End of term | 4.50% p.a (+0.35) |
| Six months | $5,000-$1,000,000 | Monthly | 4.40% p.a (+0.10) |
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Need somewhere to store cash and earn interest? The table below features savings accounts with some of the highest interest rates on the market.
Picture by Joshua Jamias on Unsplash
Harry O'Sullivan
William Jolly
Aaron Bell
