Depositors can now enjoy up to 6.5 percent interest on general savings. [break]
If they can afford, they can also recoup interest return of 12 percent by prudently choosing fixed deposit schemes.
“Depositors need not satisfy with nominal interest rate these days. By choosing the right bank and appropriate scheme, they can reap maximum benefits,” said Sovan Dev Panta of Lumbini Bank.
But to general depositors, finding the right bank and scheme might be a tricky task.
General perception of the market is: older institutions and banks with sound capital base are still offering lower interest rates. Official rates posted by Nabil Bank, Everest Bank, Rastirya Banijya Bank, Nepal Bank Limited, Agricultural Development Bank and Standard Chartered, among others, on their sites show normal saving interest rates ranging from 2 to 3 percent.
But experts suggest the customers not to generalize the perception because some of these institutions are also offering attractive interest rates through other schemes. For example, Nabil Bank which offers only 3 percent on normal savings is offering up to 8 percent on special savings.
“It is true that older banks do not want to increase their cost. But the customers should know that they are also targeting new depositors with different schemes, rather than increasing the interest rate of normal savings,” said Kamal Prasad Gyawali, managing director of Kist Bank.
Kist Bank, on its part, is offering 6.25 - 9 percent on savings and up to 12 percent on fixed deposits. It is also offering ´special rates´ to employees of different sectors, aiming to widen its client base in new areas.
NMB is too is offering up to 12 percent interest rate on fixed deposits of a minimum of 19 months and 9.25 percent on savings. That is not all. The bank pays additional 8 percent interest on fixed deposits interest saved in the bank.
Effectively, this makes net interest return on deposit touch well over 13 percent.
“Our offer is probably the highest offer in the banking sector,” said Upendra Poudel, CEO of NMB Bank.
Lumbini Bank is also offering up to 7.5 percent on “Platinum Savings” and up to 12 percent on fixed deposits. CEO Pant said that the bank would fix the interest rate to match with the inflation in the market. “We want to give reasonable returns to our customers,” he said.
Some of the development banks are offering higher interests than the banks and finance companies. However, experts suggest the customers to follow their financial statements closely before taking any decision.
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