Popular Direct Offers Eye-Catching CD Rates

Popular Direct is offering some very competitive CD rates right now.

Entering the scene last year, it offers a menu of CDs and a simple savings account.

Popular Direct is the newer offspring of Banco Popular North America, which is the U.S. subsidiary of Puerto Rican bank Popular Inc.

Popular Inc.’s brick-and-mortar U.S. presence is Popular Community Bank, which operates almost 50 branches in New York, New Jersey and south Florida.

If that rings any bells, it’s because Banco Popular also owns E-Loan, and we wrote about both of them extensively in the summer of 2015 when E-Loan dramatically raised its rates at the same time that Puerto Rico defaulted on its debt (the two events were unrelated, as you can read here.)

Popular Direct is currently offering CD rates on a range of terms that beat out many of the top national banks offering CDs. 

For example, it’s offering 3.25% APY with a $10,000 minimum deposit on a 5-year CD.

For reference, the average nationally available 5-year CD pays just 1.30%.

Popular is also offering an attractive rate on its 1-year CD (2.50%), 18-month CD (2.65%) and 3-year CD (3.00%). Its 4-year CD is paying 3.05% APY.

You can apply to open a certificate on its site.