Yahoo Finance ANZ reveals major change to millions of bank accounts
ANZ customers have been hit with some unwelcome news that the major bank has slashed its savings rate to 0.15 per cent.
ANZ cut the rate for its Online Saver and Progress Saver accounts after a similar move in December 2021.
The changes will come as a major blow to savers as living costs increase off the back of the Ukraine conflict and east coast floods, while savings rates continue to plummet.
“In cutting its savings rates by 0.05 per cent today, ANZ continues the long downward grind of savings rates that started years ago,” Canstar finance expert Steve Mickenbecker said.
“Savers have had no joy in years, as interest rates have glided down to rock bottom.”
Mickenbecker said older Australians will likely feel the burn more so than the younger generation.
“For retirees watching the cost of living rise as savings interest rates fall, making ends meet becomes tougher with each small cut,” he said.
“The majority of interest rate talk is about the Reserve Bank lifting the cash rate later this year, but the other side of the equation is that savings rates are at rock bottom and continue to drop.”
Canstar analysis found savers could get a rate up to 1.20 per cent higher than ANZ’s savings rates by choosing the top savings account rate in the market. While savers under 30 could be eligible for a rate of up to 1.85 per cent higher.
“Even though home loan fixed interest rates have leapt up, variable rates remain low, and savers are bearing this load by way of near-zero interest rates,” Mickenbecker said.
“Savers can find some refuge in the best rates in the market, but these too have shrunk to 1.35 per cent or 2.00 per cent for those under 30. It’s better to receive a small return than almost none.”
Follow Yahoo Finance on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter, and subscribe to the free Fully Briefed daily newsletter.
