Union Bank is a full service American bank that is wholly owned by one of Japan’s three mega banks – MUFG Bank.

Union Bank has almost 400 branches (398) across the Pacific Northwest – Washington, Oregon and California and commercial offices in major cities such as Dallas, Houston, Chicago, and New York.

Their deposit account offering consists of checking, savings, money market and certificates of deposit, which they refer to as “Time Deposit Accounts.”

Most of Union Bank’s deposit accounts need to be opened at a local branch, however their money market account and Priority Checking account can be opened online.

For the purpose of this review we will focus on Union Bank’s fixed-rate CDs. Union Bank offers several flexible short term CDs and long term CDs with durations ranging from just 7 – 31 days to 60 months.

To see if Union Bank’s CDs are right for you, continue reading our review below.

Union Bank CD Rates + Details

Union Bank is member FDIC and consumer deposits are federally insured up to the applicable limits. Union Bank has a minimum deposit requirement of $2,500 for their short term CD ranging from 7 to 31 days and a minimum deposit requirement of $350 for all other durations.

Union bank also offers IRA CDs with terms ranging from 90 days to 60 months. The same APYs apply.

Union Bank Time Deposit (CD) Rates

To give these yields some context, the current national average for a 12 month CD and a 60 month CD sit at just 0.22% APY and 0.47% APY, respectively.

We should also note that Union Bank has a tiered rate structure based on deposit amount. Although all tiers pay the same APY currently, it is reasonable to assume that in more favorable savings rate environments Union Bank may offer higher yields on larger balances.

Union Bank compounds interest daily on their CDs and the interest can be paid out according to the account holder’s discretion. This added flexibility is a nice feature for those living off interest payments. Generally interest payments are paid monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually.

If you need access to funds prior to your deposit’s maturity date, Union Bank will impose an early withdrawal fee. They calculate the fee on a 365-day basis as follows:

Union Bank Early Withdrawal Fees

• For CD terms of 7 – 31 days: The greatest of 1) all interest earned on the amount withdrawn; 2) 7 days’ interest on the amount withdrawn; or 3) the amount of interest that could have been earned on the amount withdrawn for one-half the term.
• For CD terms of 32 – 91 days: The greater of 31 days’ simple interest at the rate being paid on the amount withdrawn; or 2) the compensating penalty
• For CD terms of 92 – 1 year: The greater of 1) 91 days’ simple interest at the rate being paid on the amount withdrawn; or 2) the compensating penalty.
• For CD terms of 1 year plus: The greater of 1) 181 days’ simple interest at the rate being paid on the amount withdrawn; or 2) the compensating penalty.

Union Bank has a fairly standard grace period of 10 days for all CD terms EXCEPT their short term 7 – 31 day option. This CD comes with a grace period of just 3 days in which you can add or withdraw funds to your deposit penalty free. If nothing is done during this grace period Union Bank will renew your CD for the same terms and the going APY at that time. Be sure to set up reminders for yourself if you wish to take action on your CD funds upon maturity. It should be noted that Union Bank will also send out reminders of your upcoming grace period.

How do Union Bank CDs Stack Up Against the Competition?

While Union Bank has offered competitive CD rates in the past, especially on higher deposit amounts, their current offers fall short of the top yielding online banks and nationally available credit unions.

For short term CDs ranging from 6 months to 12 months, some of the top offers by online banks still come in above the 0.50% APY mark. That’s more than double the national average.

Comparatively, Union Bank’s 6 – 12 month CDs come between 0.10% and 0.15% APY.

For longer term CDs, Union Bank doesn’t perform much better either. Their top yield is 0.20% APY for anything above 24 months while some of the top online institutions and nationally available credit unions still offer APYs close to 1.00% for terms of 60 months.

Union Bank Money Market and “Bank Freely” Savings

If you’re looking for a safe place to store some cash but want easier access to it, then you may want to consider one of Union Bank’s variable-rate savings products. They offer a money market account which can be opened online and a traditional savings account called the “Bank Freely” savings which needs to be opened at a local branch.

Their money market account comes with a low APY of just 0.05% on all balances and you must maintain a $2,500 daily balance to avoid either a $9 or $10/month service charge. $9 if you opt for online statements and $10 if you choose paper statements.

The savings account is more lenient but comes with a lower APY. You can open their Bank Freely savings with any amount greater than $0 and there are no monthly service charges to worry about. That said, the APY is just 0.01% currently.