Update 11/24/24: Deal is back and valid until January 2, 2025
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $2,500
- Availability: Nationwide
- Direct deposit required: Yes
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Unknown
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: $50, avoidable
- Early account termination fee: $25, 180 days
- Household limit: None listed
- Expiration date:November 22, 2024
Contents
The Offer
- HSBC is offering a $1,500 or $2,500 bonus when you open a new Premier checking account. Bonus you receive depends on the amount you deposit or invest the following for 3 full consecutive months following the new account opening month:
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Receive a cash bonus of $1,500 when you deposit or invest $100,000 to $249,999.99
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Receive a cash bonus of $2,500 when you deposit or invest $250,000+
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The Fine Print
- Offer valid from January 8, 2024, through and including March 27, 2024 (“Offer Period”). Only New Customers are eligible for this offer.
- Customers who have a current or past HSBC account in the U.S. on file are not eligible for this offer.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
This account has a $50 monthly fee, this fee is waived if you do any of the following:
- Maintain balances of $75,000 in combined U.S. Dollar personal deposit accounts and investment* balances OR
- Recurring direct deposits totaling at least $5,000 from a third party to an HSBC Premier checking account(s) per calendar month OR
- Any HSBC U.S. residential mortgage loan with an original loan amount of at least $500,000. Business owners may use their qualifying HSBC U.S. Dollar commercial balances to qualify for a personal Premier relationship
Early Account Termination Fee
$25, 180 days
Our Verdict
The lowest tier is the best rate of return at ~6%. It does say you can have the funds invested, but not sure how that works in practice. Premier checking itself earns a 0.01% interest rate so probably not worth considering for most people as the 6% rate is only marginal when compared to other high interest accounts. Better than the previous bonus offered.
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
Thanks
favo🔗 for your helpful posts from July…here are my DPs
8/21 – Applied for Premier Checking and approved
8/21 – Applied for self-directed brokerage..approved but couldn’t use right away
8/22 – pushed $100k to Premier Checking from Fidelity
8/23 – Pushed another $60 to keep as a buffer in checking account
8/27 – Brokerage was now usable…had to call in to link checking and brokerage
8/27 – 2 hours later I was able to push $100k from checking to brokerage
8/28 – could see the 100k showing in brokerage…just let it sit in the interest bearing MM account (4.2% ish I think)
12/2 – transferred all brokerage funds to premier checking…then withdrew all but $60 to different bank
12/13 – $1,500 bonus posted to checking…I’ll probably do chase biz $5k recurring deposts to avoid the $50 monthly fee and close after 6 months
Glad it worked out for you 🙂
DD from completing this earlier in the year via the referral offer: I had a savings account with HSBC that was closed around 11 years ago. I saw a comment from someone that the system would not let you continue with the offer if it detected you as an existing customer and therefore not eligible, which didn’t happen when I opened the account. So it seems that 10+ years results in you dropping out of their system and possibly becoming eligible as a new customer. I opened the brokerage account and just kept the balance in the money market account there for the required period.
Monthly fees are kind of icky
What do you think of connecting with Vanguard and then transferring 100K in one fell swoop? Does this kind of transaction draw unnecessary attention from IRS etc?
blergh
Consumer accounts/assets that are ineligible for Qualifying Balance: insurance products; fixed and variable annuities; 529 College Savings Plans; any retirement accounts, including, but not limited to, IRAs, Keogh, Simple IRAs and 401(k) Plans; UTMA and UGMA accounts; commercial accounts; and revocable or irrevocable trust accounts.
Can you “invest” into something like SGOV? Essentially no risk and earning interests at about 4%. So totally 10% with no risk. Right?
This comment section says the core sweep is money market fund; which I would consider good enough.
If you have a 5% interest rate elsewhere…So, $248 bonus if you deposit 100k within 30 days and hold for 90 days. PASS!!
You can link a self directed brokerage that counts for the relationship balance.
And that’s the best case scenario… HSBC stiffed me last time.
What happened?
ID verification failed. When I called to verify, the UW asked a lot of questions and approved me.
When the bonus didn’t post I contacted HSBC. I was told I didn’t qualify because the promo was only for online applications, not phone applications. They said my screenshots were not relevant because I’d abandoned the online application.
Apparently the UW had started a new application instead of verifying the first one. Maybe they get a spiff or maybe he just thought it was easier.
I made the mistake of not verifying the promo was attached before jumping through the hoops. I thought screenshots were enough. A $750 lesson learned.
That sucks. No luck with CFPB/FDIC/OCC?
What was the reason?
In many ways, it is a lot like the Wells Fargo Premier offer. It is a relationship bonus, in which you have to open a checking, however the balance requirement can be met by linked savings and brokerage account.
Wells fargo only requires the funds be in the account for 45 days
Retirement accounts not eligible.
Pretty tempting to do after Wells Fargo!