Standard Bank MarketLink Investment Account Review 2021

Posted on Sep 3, 2021 by Staff Writer

Rateweb | South Africa

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Standard Bank MarketLink Investment Account Summary

Standard Bank MarketLink Investment account is a one of Standard Bank’s savings account designed for emergency savings. The account opening minimum deposit is R1000.00, it comes with variable monthly nominal interest rates ranging from 0.75% to 2.50%. It allows for unlimited deposits and has 2 uncharged withdrawals.

The account is best used to save for the rainy days as terms of withdrawal do not have stringed restrictions.

Standard Bank is amongst the best savings accounts in South Africa.

Application

When applying you will need:

• Your South African ID
• Proof of residence (not older than three months)
• Minors will need the consent of a parent or guardian
• You need a minimum deposit of R1000.00 to open the account

Cash deposits and withdrawals

When it comes to deposits and withdrawals, using the MarketLink investment account is like using your full transactional account. There are no restrictions to the number of deposits and withdrawals that can be made in the account.

However, as much as you have unlimited deposits, you will only get 2 free ATM cash deposits and the rest are subject to a deposit fee charged.

You also get 1 free inter-account transfer in-app, online, at ATMs or your phone. Of late, banks encourage the use of their mobile apps and online services by reducing the fees of transaction performed of these platforms.

Therefore, to save on transactional costs you are encouraged to utilize the use of mobile apps and online self-services.

How easy can I access my funds?

The ease of accessing your funds is one of the unique savings need and requirement you must consider when picking a savings account. The Standard Bank’s MarketLink investment account allows you to draw from your savings funds whenever the need arises.

To access your funds, you will have to link your MarketLink account to an existing card or else apply for a new card at a Standard bank branch. Linking the account allows you to view or access your account from a Standard Bank ATM or Internet banking service.

To keep the MarketLink account active you need to maintain a balance of at least R50. Even though any balance that is less than R1 000 does not attract interest, the account must not be withdrawn to a zero balance in order to keep it active.

Standard Bank MarketLink Investment Account Interest rate

Balance Bands	Monthly nominal rates
R0 – R 999	0%
R1 000 – R4 999	0.75%
R5 000 – R19 999	0.85%
R20 000 – R99 999	1.35%
R100 000 – R999 999	2.30%
R 1000 000 & above	2.50%

Interest is calculated daily and paid out to your account monthly. The interest rate is based on your account balance, below we show interest rates quoted as per annum rates:

The MarketLink investment account’s interest rates have a sharp sudden increase when your account reaches a R20 000 balance.

Competitive advantages of the MarketLink investment account

• Flexibility, the account functions as if it’s a transactional account with no limits to the number of transactions you might make in the account.
• Linked accounts, the MarketLink investment account can link your debit, cheque or credit cards. This gives you convenience whenever you want to make a transaction.
• No monthly fees, you get to freely use a bank account without having to pay any fixed monthly fees usually classified as service fees.

Competitive disadvantages of the MarketLink investment account

The interest rates only start to be competitive on large amounts which makes it hard to see the returns of savings on small amounts.

Conclusion

The MarketLink investment account is an ideal way of saving money which you intend to have frequent access to. It allows you to link the account to your most used cards enabling you to make transactions as you please.

However, should you want to save toward a goal to be met at a specific date, you might consider the Flexi Advantage account as it offers a fixed competitive interest rate. The Flexi Advantage account can only allow you to withdraw 40% of your initial deposit during the investment term.