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Verizon and Openbank announced a partnership on Tuesday that gives Verizon customers a way to save money on their bill if they have an Openbank High Yield Savings account.
Verizon customers can save money on their monthly bill for 12 months and also access a competitive annual percentage yield (APY) by opening an Openbank High Yield Savings account. Openbank, a division of Santander Bank, currently offers the second-highest yield (4.4 percent annual percentage yield) among Bankrate’s best high-yield savings accounts.
The exact amount of savings on your Verizon bill will be either $5, $10 or $15 per month, depending on your average savings account balance. So that could save a Verizon customer between $60 and $180 over the 12-month period.
“By partnering with Verizon, the nation’s leading mobile provider, Openbank can offer a differentiated savings opportunity and digital experience to millions of consumers across the U.S.,” says Ana Botín, Banco Santander executive chair.
How the partnership works
You’ll need at least $500 to open an Openbank High Yield Savings account, and have an average daily balance of at least $1,000 in your account to save money on your Verizon bill.
Verizon customers who meet the Openbank balance requirements save the following for 12 months:
- $5 per month with an average daily balance of at least $1,000
- $10 per month with an average daily balance of at least $10,000
- $15 per month with an average daily balance of at least $30,000
Currently, people who live in some East Coast states can’t open this account (though it may be available soon in those states, according to Openbank’s website). Also, Santander Bank branches are not able to assist Openbank customers.
Verizon customers will need to have a residential address in one of the eligible states, be a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien and be at least 18 years old for this offer. They also need to have a U.S. cell phone number and a tablet or mobile phone to download the bank’s app – and they can’t have more than 12 phone lines on their Verizon account, depending on their plan, according to Verizon. In addition to cellular customers, LTE Home Internet and 5G Home Internet customers are eligible for this offer.
Verizon isn’t the first cell phone company to be linked to a high-yielding account. T-Mobile has its T-Mobile MONEY account, an account provided by Customers Bank.
What to keep in mind
Openbank made its debut as a division of Santander in October 2024. Like many other brick-and-mortar banks that have an online division, your balances at both of these banks are combined to determine Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insurance coverage. So if you already had $200,000 in an individual savings account at Santander Bank, and you deposited $100,000 into an Openbank individual savings account, $50,000 of your balance wouldn’t be FDIC insured.
Also, like most savings accounts, Openbank’s yield is variable – so it can change at any time.
Since Openbank is a newer bank, you want to keep an eye on your APY to make sure it stays competitive. But that’s also the case with any account with a variable APY.
Openbank customers won’t be able to access their money at an ATM and they won’t be able to have their account serviced at a Santander branch. This isn’t unusual though. There are other online banks that don’t have ATM access and, generally, online banks don’t have branch access.
How does this deal compare to top savings accounts?
Openbank’s High Yield Savings account offers one of the top savings yields, which is more than seven times higher than the national average. The Verizon bill credit makes it an account Verizon customers might want to consider – assuming that Openbank’s APY stays competitive in the future.
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