I am a harsh task master when it comes to my money.

If it’s in my portfolio, it’d better be working around the clock for me.

And that includes the cold hard cash sitting in my savings account.

Cash may be a safe place to wait out the volatility of the market. But it doesn’t do me any good if it isn’t actively increasing my bottom line.

Here at Intelligent Income Daily, we’re focused on finding the safest income investments on the market. Though we don’t normally think of cash as an investment, in times of uncertainty, it provides us safety and the ability to scoop up great deals when we find them.

And in this rising-rate environment, there are many options to get a surprisingly good yield on cash.

Today, I want to show you a few surprising ways to get the best returns on your cash by enhancing your yield with minimal additional risk.

And I’ll tell you about a brand-new strategy I launched that can help you earn income – guaranteed by a contract – without having to touch the volatility of the stock market. So you can protect your cash through stock market booms and busts.

Savings Account Interest Rate
According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the national average interest rate for savings accounts is just 0.33%.

But you won’t even get that much if you leave your money in an account at one of the megabanks. Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase offer a paltry 0.01% on their standard savings accounts. Wells Fargo isn’t much better with just 0.15%.

That’s a slap in the face when the Fed has raised short-term rates to over 4.5%.

But it’s not hard to find online banks that offer much more attractive rates. And you might be surprised to find some familiar names that aren’t known for their traditional banking services.

For example:

  • Ally Financial is one of the nation’s largest auto lenders. But it offers a savings account with 3.4% interest.
  • American Express is a credit card company. But it pays 3.5% on their savings accounts.
  • Goldman Sachs is known as an investment bank. But it offers nearly 3.8% through its Marcus consumer banking business.

These are all protected by FDIC insurance.

Another option for earning attractive yields on cash is money market mutual funds available through your broker.

Fidelity’s Treasury Money Market Fund (FZFXX) offers 4%… Schwab’s Treasury Obligations Money Fund (SNOXX) yields 4.26%… and Vanguard’s Treasury Money Market Fund (VUSXX) pays 4.5%.

Keep in mind that mutual funds are not protected by FDIC insurance. But these three only invest in the safest form of debt – Treasurys backed by the federal government.

There are also ETFs that can serve as cash substitutes. But it’s important to pick funds that focus only on the types of bonds that limit credit and interest rate risk. Specifically, the best ones are ultrashort duration or floating rate Treasury funds.

A couple of good options are the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL), which yields 4.4%, and WisdomTree Floating Rate Treasury ETF (USFR), which yields 4.45%.

Millionaire Mindset
Cash may be a safe holding-pattern asset. But there’s no reason to miss out on a competitive yield while you wait.

Don’t let your money slack on the job.

This is the kind of mindset that differentiates average investors from millionaires and billionaires.

Money is an asset. So don’t give it vacation time to sit back and relax. Make it work around the clock for you.

Your portfolio will thank you.

Happy SWAN (sleep well at night) investing,

Brad Thomas
Editor, Intelligent Income Daily

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Source: Wide Moat Research