Amid these testing times of a vulnerable global economy, are you looking for some safe investment schemes? Put your worries aside as the country's top five banks are offering guaranteed, regular interest rates on fixed deposit (FD) schemes. The State Bank of India, ICICI bank, HDFC bank, Axis Bank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank provide annual returns ranging between 2.50-5.50 per cent for the general public, and 2.50-6.00 for senior citizens on fixed deposits up to Rs 2 crore. A fixed deposit is considered to be a safe and reliable investment scheme as it allows the depositor to save a specific amount of money in the bank for a fixed tenure, also known as a lock-in period. Once the tenure ends, the depositor receives the amount that was invested along with certain compound interest.
Here are the current interest rates provided by the country's top banks:
| Interest Rate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bank | For general public | For senior citizens |
| State Bank of India | 2.90%-5.40% | 3.40%-6.20% |
| ICICI Bank | 2.50%-5.50% | 3.00%-6.30% |
| HDFC Bank | 2.50%-5.50% | 3.00%-6.25% |
| Kotak Mahindra Bank | 2.50-4.50 | 3.00- 5.00 |
| Axis Bank | 2.50-5.50 | 2.50-6.00 |
| (Source: Bank websites) | ||
Fixed deposits are safe investments in the banks as they offer guaranteed, regular returns, as opposed to market-linked investments such as stocks, where returns are unstable over time. The banks revise their interest rates on fixed deposits from time to time, based upon the changes in benchmark rates, which are set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
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