E*TRADE is offering select customers a $250 checking account bonus

Some E*TRADE customers have received an email offering a $250 bonus for opening a new Morgan Stanley Private Bank (MSPB) checking account. Morgan Stanley Private Bank and E*TRADE are both owned by Morgan Stanley.

The offer is not available to anyone who’s had a Morgan Stanley Private Bank Checking or Max-Rate Checking account within the past 12 months, and only accounts opened between 11/12/2024 and 12/15/2024 qualify for the offer.

As long as you can meet the direct deposit requirements, the bonus is super easy!

Here’s How to Get Your $250 

Sign up for a new Checking or Max-Rate Checking account by Dec. 15, 2024.

Get at least 2 direct deposits of $1,000 or more within 90 days of opening your account.

That’s all. There’s no requirement to keep the funds in your account. 

Ninety days after your account has been opened, the bank will start reviewing the account to see if you met the qualifications. The bonus will be paid up 120 days after your account has been opened.

Balance Requirements and Fees

There’s no minimum required to open the accounts. However, the account must be funded within 30 days to avoid closure.

The offer doesn’t require you to keep the direct deposit or a set amount in your account. However, it’s always best to not zero out your account while you’re waiting on the bonus payout. It’s common practice for financial institutions to close accounts that have no balance. 

There’s no maintenance fee for the Checking account. However, there’s a $15 fee for the Max-Rate Checking account. The fee is charged if a $5,000 average monthly balance is not maintained on or after the end of the second calendar month from opening the account.

The Max-Rate Checking account pays a 3.00% APY. Unless you’re planning to maintain a $5,000 average balance, the no-fee Checking account is the better option.

Some things to consider…

It’s worth noting that the offer terms state, “Morgan Stanley Private Bank may, in its sole discretion, assess each account holder’s Direct Deposit activity to determine eligibility and may require additional documentation to complete this verification.” It’s not very common to see such terms in bonus offers. So, be prepared to provide evidence of a legitimate direct deposit, which the terms define as a “regular recurring deposit of income, such as salary, pension, government payments (such as social security) from your employer, payroll or benefits provider or government agency, or other payment that occurs through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) Network.”

This may be an offer only available to existing E*TRADE customers. If you didn’t personally receive the email offer, you can visit https://us.etrade.com/promo/checking-offer or contact E*TRADE to see if you would qualify.