Big banks are still paying paltry interest on checking and savings accounts despite the Federal Reserve’s steepest rate increases in decades. Their wealth-management customers are done waiting: They are moving the extra savings they accumulated during the pandemic into products whose rates have more closely tracked the Fed.
“Every time the Fed hikes, the opportunity cost of leaving idle cash in low-yielding accounts increases,” said Jason Goldberg, an analyst at Barclays PLC. “You’re seeing consumers who have extra cash being proactive with it.”