CBA shaves savings rates again after a year of micro-cuts

Australia’s largest bank, CBA, has today cut the rate on two of its popular savings accounts by up to 0.05 per cent.

CBA Netbank Saver

CBA Youthsaver

Note: for max rate, balances must be below $50K and customers must grow balance each month.

To date in 2021, CBA has cut its Netbank Saver a total of six times, its GoalSaver account five times, and its Youthsaver account six times.

CBA savings rate cuts in 2021

Note: GoalSaver rate from 1 Jan is for balances of $50K and over.

RateCity.com.au research director, Sally Tindall, said: “While today’s cuts from CBA are minor, they round out a year of micro-cuts from the banks, despite no move to the cash rate.”

“The problem for the banks is they’re packed to the rafters with cash. A lot of banks aren’t willing to post competitive savings rates because they don’t want to attract more money that they’ll then have to pay interest on,” she said.

The most recent APRA statistics for October show Australian households have a total of $1.21 trillion in the bank – an increase of $108 billion from the year prior and the highest amount on record.

“It’s been a bumper year for deposits. The pandemic has encouraged people to save for a rainy day and, for many people, low-cost lockdown living has helped facilitate this,” she said.

“While we might collectively have more money stashed in the bank than ever before, the savings are bittersweet because for many people they’re earning next to nothing in interest.

“Next year looks equally bleak for savers. The banks aren’t likely to move their rates north until the RBA hikes the cash rate, and at this stage that’s not expected until 2023.

“It’s still worth shopping around. Some banks are offering ongoing savings rates of over 1 percent, but they’re getting harder and harder to find,” she said.

Big four bank: conditional savings rates

Source: RateCity.com.au. Conditions apply for max rate.

Big four banks standard savers

Source: RateCity.com.au. Intro rate terms - CBA & Westpac 5 months, NAB 4 months, ANZ 3 months.

Highest ongoing savings accounts (no age restrictions)

Source: RateCity.com.au. Conditions apply for max interest rate.

Young Adults: highest ongoing savings rates

Source: RateCity.com.au. Conditions apply for max interest rate.

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