Have been following this topic for quite some time but have not posted before. This is my 1st post to LYN. I found out that there are many confusions regarding Islamic FDs/TDs. This has been going on for years it seems. I would like to share my understanding of Islamic deposits.

There are actually two types of Islamic products similar to FDs.

There are 2 concepts related to Islamic term deposit: -
1) Mudarabah (Profit-Sharing) - usually offered as General Investment Account-i (GIA-i)
2) Tawaruq / Murabahah (Cost Plus Sale) - usually offered as Term Deposit-i (TD-i)

For GIA-i accounts, the profit rate is not fixed but based on profit sharing, the rate quoted is only indicative. For TD-i accounts, the profit rate is fixed upfront during placement and the profit is guaranteed. Initially when Islamic FDs were introduced, most of them were based on the Mudarabah concept. Later, the Tawaruq / Murabahah concept was introduced. Some banks converted their islamic TDs to the new concept while others introduced new product based on the new concept.

The confusion is further compounded when Public Bank introduced the Step-Up Promo (4+4+4) for its Islamic Term Deposit. This 'subject to OPR changes' condition is not unique to the TD-I only but also applies to its earlier Step-Up Promo(3+3+3) which is also applicable to its conventional FD. The profit rate for Public Bank's TD-i is fixed and guaranteed upon placement as it is based on Murabahah principle. Only the subsequent roll-overs are subject to OPR changes which is also equally applicable to conventional FDs.

With the coming into force of the IFSA, Murabahah-based products would be classified as Islamic deposits while Mudarabah-based products would be classified as Islamic investments. Hence, many banks are converting the accounts either to retain them as Islamic deposit or to convert them to Islamic investment. When the banks are finished with the conversion exercise, only Tawaruq / Murabahah-based products would be considered as Islamic term deposits. Mudarabah-based products would no longer be eligible for protection by PIDM as they are no longer Islamic deposit accounts.

Based on my own understanding, unless a person is a Muslim or married to a Muslim, Syariah Law is not applicable to him/her in terms of asset distribution. So, I think it would make no difference for a non-muslim whether the deposit is islamic or conventional as far as how it would be distributed. Otherwise, a Muslim would be subject to conventional asset distribution if he puts money in conventional FD instead of Islamic 1s. I could not find any official info on that online or anywhere else that mentions the money in the Islamic Banking TD/FD is subjected to Syariah Law in terms of how it will be distributed for non-muslims. But I could be wrong as I am not an expert in Islamic Banking or Syariah law and I do not have any prior experience with it. Maybe someone with more expertise in this area can shed more light on this.

If you are looking for a savings account with high interest rate that allows withdrawal without affecting the rate, you can consider TRUE Savings account from AmBank, 2.8% p.a limited to 3 withdrawals a month. Check out this thread for more info: -

True by AmBank



Is this e-SmartSavers account applicable to Double Savings Deal where 50% fund goes to 3-months FD & 50% goes into the SmartSavers account? I don't think so, right? Since this one is online-based but I was wondering since it is SmartSavers account too. Anyone can confirm this? Thank you.

Thanks.

Actually, the message was in reply to Ramjade. Btw, thanks for sharing the news about e-SmartSavers.

Is it true that CIMB does not allow joint FD account holder (either to sign) to withdraw through banker's cheque using only one of the names on the cheque? I requested the cheque to be issued under my name but was told that it must be two names, cannot be 1 name only. Other banks like UOB allow me to do so. In fact, they even recommended me to do so when I asked.

I had to make 3 visits to CIMB recently because of this. As there were 2 names on the cheque, the cheque got rejected when I tried to deposit it into my account in another bank. So, I went back to CIMB to cancel the cheque & ask them to reissue another 1 with my name only the next day. I ended up paying another RM5.98 + RM2.12 (cheque cancellation fee) for it. They got my name printed wrongly. I was in a hurry at that time so I did not check properly before leaving the counter as their service was slow. I just skimmed through the cheque and it looked ok to me. Only on my way to another bank did I found out that they got my name printed wrongly. I had to go back to CIMB again for that. More waiting. The officer did not even have the courtesy to apologize for the mistake. By the time I got my cheque, the other bank was already closed.

I think they also did not pay me the interest for the weekend. This coupled with the interest lost for the cheque clearance & petrol costs all added up to my losses. Really lousy bank.

Thanks for the advice but I do not have a savings account with CIMB, that is why I cannot perform IBG.



The condition of withdrawal is either 1 to withdraw. Yet, CIMB won't allow me to put only 1 name on the cheque.

No point complaining to the BM. In fact, the counter staff confirmed with her superior and told me it must be 2 names. This bank really lousy 1. They won't even allow other people to bring your bank book to the bank to update it on your behalf. You need to be physically present at the counter and do some verification just to update your bank book.



You can consider opening a basic savings account with no annual fee. You can get the ATM card without any annual fee.

Who knows? Maybe they treat it as cash. In the end, they got to charge me extra RM8.10 (RM5.98+2.12) for it.


Affin does not have true eFD. Affin has online FD placement only, the branch will process the request on the next working day. It is similar to Public Bank's online FD placement but Affin will send you the cert instead of asking you to collect it at the branch. You cannot withdraw the FD online.


This link might be useful to those looking for current FD board rates
http://www.abm.org.my//_repository/uploade...0JAN%202015.pdf


Btw, anyone knows how FD upliftment works in OCBC? Besides uplifting over the counter, are there any other options? Can uplift online or over the phone? Does OCBC offer eFD? If yes, does it work like Public Bank or Maybank? Meaning can uplift online or need to go to branch to do it?

It is true that most banks' min deposit requirement for 1 month FD is 5k. However, there are some banks which only require 1k for 1 month FD. They are: -

i) AmBank Islamic
ii) RHB Islamic
iii) BSN
iv) Bank Islam
v) Al-Rajhi Bank

Banks that offer true eFD (can do placement & uplift online)
i) AmBank
ii) RHB
iii) Maybank
iv) CIMB
v) Alliance Bank
vi) Hong Leong
vii) UOB
viii) OCBC


Banks that offer online FD placement (cannot uplift online)
i) Affin
ii) Public Bank

I think HSBC can do online placement too but not sure if can uplift online or not.

You are welcome Thank you for keeping Post#1 updated with useful info.


Ambank Islamic.

As reported earlier by some of the members here, Maybank Islamic revised their Islamic FD board rates. From 1 month to 11 months tenure, it is incresed by 0.1% p.a. No change for 1 year tenure.

1 month - 3.25%
3 months - 3.30%
6 months - 3.35%
12 months - 3.40%

Source:
Maybank Islamic Rates


For 1 to 5 months, it is comparable to Affin which offers the highest board rate for FD/TD for a commercial bank.

This post has been edited by Nom-el: Aug 22 2015, 03:13 PM

Just to clear the air on the confusion with Maybank's Islamic FDs, the profit rate for Maybank Islamic FD and PNA-I are determined upfront and guaranteed as they are based on commodity murabahah (cost plus sale) concept. GIA Mudharabah on the other hand is based on profit-sharing where the rate is only indicative (thus not guaranteed). Please take note that Maybank's GIA Mudharabah is no longer an islamic deposit account after the recent reclassification and thus it is NOT eligible for protection by PIDM anymore. It is an Islamic Investment account with potentially higher profit rate but the principal and profit are not guaranteed. Technically speaking, it cannot be considered as Islamic FD/TD. Maybank Islamic FD and PNA-I on the other hand are still Islamic deposits, thus eligible for protection by PIDM.

UOB Latest Promo Rates (p.a.)

3 months - 3.85%
5 months - 4%
8 months - 4.1%
12 months - 4.2%

Min. 10k

OCBC Air Purifier/ Trolley bag Giveaway Campaign T&C

Link


Btw, anyone knows the T&C for the Premier Save Gold Deal?