Originally Posted by
SpaethCo
The CashPlus "checking account" is technically a brokerage account that just uses the Bank Deposit Program (BDP) for settlement funds. That account alone qualifies you to hold the Morgan Stanley co-branded Amex Platinum card. If you close all of your Morgan Stanley accounts eventually that will trigger closure of the Platinum card.
Say you go the "hands-off" approach and keep $700 in the CashPlus account to make sure there is always enough to pay the monthly fees over the course of the year. That $700 held in a settlement fund like FZFXX at Fidelity could earn $31.50 in interest, meanwhile the BDP program would pay out less than $0.07 on that $700. The difference in interest rate alone erodes most of the $35 advantage ($660 vs $695) right there.
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well you'll also be taxed on the $35 you gain interest, but at the same time if we the monthly fee doesn't count against the engagement bonus then we're taxed on that as well. So for better for worse it seems like in general for most people it's just a hassle to maintain after the first year. it's more like another amex plat to churn, that's now not really an option for most people.