Big Banks (High Safety, Lower Interest Rates)
- SBI: Up to 7% for general and up to 7.5% for senior citizens. Popular tenure: 2 years to less than 7 years.
- ICICI Bank: 7.25% for 15–18 months for general and 7.75% for senior citizens.
- Axis Bank: 7.25% for 15–18 months for general and 7.75% for senior citizens.
Small Finance Banks (Higher Interest Rates, Moderate Risk)
- Suryoday Small Finance Bank: 8.65% for general and 9.1% for senior citizens.
- Utkarsh Small Finance Bank: Offers similar rates.
- Unity Small Finance Bank: Up to 9.5% for senior citizens.
- North East Small Finance Bank: Provides competitive rates.
NBFCs (Higher Returns, No DICGC Insurance)
Bajaj Finance and Shriram Finance offer competitive FD rates but lack DICGC insurance, hence carry higher risk.
Platforms for FD Investment
- Stable Money App:
- Allows comparison of FD rates across banks.
- Facilitates direct FD bookings without the need to open a bank account.
- Ensures the FD is created directly with the bank.
- Win Wealth:
- Similar functionality but may require opening a savings account.
Both platforms save time by avoiding physical visits to banks and simplify tracking and managing FDs in multiple banks.
Key Recommendations
- For Safety: Invest large amounts in established banks like SBI, ICICI, and Axis. Limit investments in small finance banks to ₹5 lakhs per bank to leverage DICGC insurance.
- For Higher Returns: Explore small finance banks for smaller amounts and diversify across multiple banks to mitigate risk.
- Precautions: Verify FD creation through email/SMS from the bank and regularly monitor the performance of small finance banks.
- For Seniors: Leverage higher rates offered by banks for senior citizens by investing in their names.
Two Trusted Apps for Creating FDs
- Stable Money: Offers FD options from multiple small finance banks, including:
- Suryodaya Small Finance Bank
- Utkarsh Small Finance Bank
- Shivalik Small Finance Bank
- Shriram Finance (Note: No ₹5 lakh insurance for NBFCs like Shriram and Bajaj Finance)