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Months after one of its cryptocurrency-related products led to multimillion-dollar losses at BankProv, the Amesbury-based bank has formed a new financial technology partnership for online savings accounts.
The bank has launched a high-yield savings account available only through MaxMyInterest, a cash management platform that allocates funds among online banks. BankProv’s new account is called BankProv Max Savings, the bank said in a statement last week.
Used by individuals and by financial advisers as part of their wealth management offerings, the Max platform allocates funds each month among select accounts paying high interest rates. The platform also spreads deposits among different banks to keep balances in each account below the FDIC deposit insurance limit of $250,000. Customers can have up to eight savings accounts linked through the platform, according to Max’s website.
Because BankProv is a member of the DepositorsInsurance Fund, all amounts in the BankProv Max Savings account will be insured. The DIF is the industry-sponsored fund in Massachusetts that insures balances at member banks above the FDIC limit. BankProv is the only DIF member with an account available through the Max platform.
“We’re excited to work with Max, a company that shares our passion for providing a superior client experience,” Joe Reilly, BankProv’s co-CEO, said in the statement. “From quickly opening an account to maximizing returns on deposit balances, the BankProv Max Savings account on the MaxMyInterest platform will further enhance the banking experience for our clients. We believe our partnership with Max will provide benefits as more consumers continue to seek digital banking options and keep a closer eye on interest rates.”
The Max platform comes with a fee of 4 basis points per quarter on the balance, with a minimum fee of $20 every three months, according to the company’s website. No minimum balance is required to open the account, but most customers have between $50,000 and $5 million, according to the website.
Customers can link their existing checking account to a Max Checking account, which is available through a partnership with LendingClub Bank. This checking account is then used to facilitate the monthly sweep among online savings accounts. Customers with accounts at 18 banks and brokerage firms – including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Citibank – can link their checking account to the platform instead of using the Max Checking account.
The banks where the money is allocated include Ally Bank, Barclays, Customers Bank, Quontic Bank, American Express Bank, UFB Direct and BrioDirect, Webster Bank’s online bank.
Max said in the statement that banks benefit from the platform because they get direct customer relationships and deposits without costs for advertising or referral fees.
“We are proud to partner with BankProv, an innovative bank that has a long history of serving clients in Massachusetts and across the country,” Gary Zimmerman, founder and CEO of MaxMyInterest, said in the statement. “Together with BankProv, we can help clients ensure that all of their funds remain fully-insured, while earning market-leading rates.”
The partnership comes after BankProv faced a challenging second half of 2022, when the bank saw third quarter losses tied to its cryptocurrency mining loan portfolio and the subsequent departure of former CEO Dave Mansfield.
