- Syfe Cash+ Fixed helps customers achieve a fixed rate of 4.7% p.a. in 6-month HKD term deposits with banks in Hong Kong – with no minimum investment amount, no cap and no extra conditions
- Syfe continuously negotiates with banks, enabling Cash+ Fixed customers to enjoy competitive rates without bank-hopping
Hong Kong, 14 March 2024 – Syfe, Asia Pacific’s leading all-in-one digital investment platform, today announces the launch of Cash+ Fixed, Hong Kong’s first investment service for time deposits. By investing into exclusive time deposits with banks in Hong Kong, Cash+ Fixed helps investors achieve a fixed interest rate of 4.7% p.a. (HKD, 6-month term) with no minimum or maximum investment amount, no extra requirements and no management fees.
Cash+ Fixed beats almost all time deposits available to retail customers today that do not have extra conditions or restrictions. Such competitive rates are possible because Syfe leverages its scale as a financial institution to negotiate with top global banks, continuously seeking partners that can offer the most competitive returns as interest rates fluctuate. Cash+ Fixed customers can therefore be confident that rates are amongst the best available, without needing to shop around or jump between banks when their fixed term ends.
Kevin Li, General Manager and Head of Syfe Hong Kong, said: “Hong Kong has a huge number of time deposit accounts that boast high interest rates, but the highest advertised rates often involve a number of requirements. These can include high deposit thresholds or using another of the bank’s services, such as investments or loans, which may not be possible or suitable for the circumstances of many people. To help customers avoid the need to shop around to find good, achievable rates, we have launched Cash+ Fixed. This innovative service enables them to invest into time deposits with preferential rates at some of the world’s biggest banks, without the common hurdles or restrictions. Whether you have HK$5,000, $50,000 or $5,000,000, you can benefit from the competitive rates Syfe has negotiated.”
Dhruv Arora, CEO and Founder of Syfe, added: “The choice of high-interest savings accounts in the market should be great news, but we don’t think people should have to jump through hoops to reap the benefits. The issues we see here in Hong Kong are similar to those in Singapore, which led us to launch a Singapore version of Cash+ Fixed last year. This has been our fastest growing product, surpassing deposits of HK$ 1 billion within weeks. With such clear demand, we are excited to bring this service to Hong Kong so that everyone can enjoy competitive interest rates with the greatest ease and flexibility in the market. This reflects our mission to provide innovative ways of investing that empower people to grow their wealth.”
Q&A with Archit Parakh, Head of Investments, Hong Kong, and Group Head of Risk, Syfe:
Q: How is Cash+ Fixed different from a time deposit with a bank? Why not just invest in a regular time deposit?
A: Many time deposits offered by banks come with requirements. In fact, the highest rates available today for HKD time deposits all require customers to deposit a minimum amount. For some you also need to be a premium account customer, a loan customer, etc.
Whilst Syfe is not a bank, we have decided to use our scale as a financial institution to negotiate competitive interest rates for time deposits with banks. We are then able to give Cash+ Fixed customers access to these time deposits without any of the common requirements. We also don’t have any caps on investment amounts deposits or charge any fees.
Another benefit of Syfe’s investment service is that we continuously negotiate with banks to secure competitive rates. This is because the rates offered by banks are always changing. When a fixed term ends, people will normally need to shop around to find the latest rates and choose a new time deposit with a good return. With Cash+ Fixed, if customers don’t want to shop around they can simply reinvest into a new term, knowing they are getting a competitive rate.
Q: What banks are providing these time deposits within Cash+ Fixed HKD?
A: To secure competitive rates we are continuously negotiating with and finding new banking partners. When customers complete the onboarding process within the Syfe app, they will be able to see which partners we are working with at that time.
Q: If interest rates are changing all the time, how are returns fixed?
A: Because Cash+ Fixed invests into time deposits provided by banks, the normal principles of time deposits apply. The customer agrees to keep their money invested for the fixed term to lock-in the rate of return. The customer will then receive the accrued return once the investment reaches maturity.
Q: How do I get started?
A: Syfe is completely digital so there is no need to visit a branch – you simply download the Syfe app and complete the onboarding journey, which should usually take no more than 5-10 mins. You can then follow the onscreen instructions to select Cash+ Fixed, then transfer your funds. The funds initially go to a segregated account with HSBC, our custodian bank, and then Syfe moves the funds into a trust account with our banking partners for the time deposit.
Q: How does Syfe keep my money safe?
A: The safety of customers’ money is our biggest priority. Syfe aims to maximise the safety of customers’ funds by only partnering with leading banks in Hong Kong. Our partner banks must also have a strong balance sheet and an investment-grade credit rating. We will never partner with banks that do not offer the highest level of stability – even if they can offer higher interest rates.
Further, because Syfe is not a bank, we never take custody of customers’ funds. Instead, customers transfer their money directly to our custodian bank, HSBC. Funds are then invested into the time deposits of our banking partners, where they are held under designated client money accounts, meaning the customer bears no credit risk with respect to Syfe. While this service does not fall under the Hong Kong Deposit Protection Scheme (DPS), customers can invest with confidence because we only partner with banks that are financially sound.
Cash+ Fixed is an investment management service, and should not be taken as a collective investment scheme or a deposit or savings account. The optimised rates are not due to pooling of invested funds by Syfe, and Syfe is not offering Cash+ Fixed as a fund, scheme, or portfolio with a pooling element. Until the investment starts, the return rate is subject to change. Cash+ Fixed returns are fixed, subject to underlying bank risk. All Cash+ Fixed returns are only available after maturity.
