Yes, definitely do so. The most important thing to read in the fine print is the following (emphasis mine):
Looks like this offer isn't really worth much anymore.

I use ING Canada. I wish we had the same interest rates as you guys down in the States but I'll make do. The nice thing about it is it's a good place to park your money and forget about it. I have it drawing out $100 a week from my chequing account right now. Since I don't really think about it, its not a big deal. Of course I have the same thing happening with my RRSPs anyhow. This account is more along the lines of saving for a new car or something later on.

Cheers

I personally like HSBC which just bumped up to 4.25%.

That said, there are a bunch of deals including miles/points offers that have competitive rates too:

Most interesting is a Costco Annuity that claims to have first-year interest rates as high as 7.15%...

Here are some interesting other miles and points earning banking deals that I found on dealmine.com:

BankDirect earn aadvantage miles as follows:
-- 50 miles a month for every $1,000 maintained in a Mileage Money Market Account.
-- 1,000 miles for every $1,000 spent on a 2-year Mileage CD purchase
-- 500 miles for every $1,000 spent on a 1-year Mileage CD purchase
-- 250 miles for every $1,000 spent on a 6-month Mileage CD purchase

Guaranty Bank get one AAdvantage mile for every $10 of your average monthly balance.

NetBank -- 3,500 delta skymiles for opening a qualifying checking account
NetBank -- Get up to 9,000 TripRewards Points when you bank online

I've been using umbrellabank.com for years. No miles, but the savings rate is up to 4.40%

Another rate increase at ING: now 3.80%.

Also, if you have TIVO and don't yet have an account with ING, you can signup and still get $25. http://ingdirect.com/tivo. It doesn't appear to have a minimum opening amount, but looks like you do have to be an actual Tivo subsciber.

Here's the info required on the page:
--> last four digits of the primary phone number on the TiVo account
--> five digit zip code
--> reference code as seen in the ING DIRECT showcase on your TiVo service (I can't remember mine right now, but it was something like TIVO1)

Here's the text from the page:

Great Rate. No Fees. No Minimums. No need to change banks - Your Orange Savings Account will be automatically linked to your current checking account. Access your account around the clock via ingdirect.com. Open your account online in under 5 minutes.

$25 Bonus is only available for new accounts with a new customer as the primary owner. $25 Bonus starts earning interest upon account opening, but is unavailable for withdrawal for 30 days. This offer is only valid for TiVo� customers with a current valid account. Valid through 4/30/06.

I've always used the G.E. Interest Plus ( http://www.geinterestplus.com/ ). Can anyone tell me the disadvantages and/or differences of the ING accounts? I actually read about the ING accounts here and recommended them to my daughter (which she opened) but I haven't heard much about the G.E. Interest Plus account, which has worked out great for me. It also gives you $25.00 to start an account. Just curious.

Right off the bat, I see the GE Interest Plus account is not FDIC insured. Looks like a good option, though, and probably 99% safe compared to a FDIC-insured bank safety of 100%.

I wouldn't keep my "0% Balance Transfer game" money in there, but it might be good for other savings options.

As noted, not FDIC insured. Can get 4.30% from GMAC http://www.gmacbank.com/todays-rates.do

I am reasonably happy with Emmigrant Direct which is at 4% right now.

Finding the referral link is not easy. First, log into your account. Once you have gotten into your account, look on the left-hand side for the "Open account" button. Click on that, and about halfway down the page is a link for referring a friend.

Mike

And ING Direct Australia pays 5.4%. ING pays a rate that is competitive with interest rates locally.

But before you start sending your dollars to Australia, realize that ING Direct Australia requires that you link their account with a conventional AUSTRALIAN bank account. To open an Aussie bank acct. you don't need to be a citizen or resident, but you need to make your initial deposit IN PERSON! And ING Direct requires an Australian Tax File Number.

The main difference is that ING now requires a $250 deposit by the new customer, in order to receive the $25. (Only the referrals created before mid-October were grandfathered in with the "no minimum deposit.")

Still, that's a 10% return rate just for opening an account.

I have referrals and you can still find them on the web as well.

The nice bit about being with ING is that you can create laddering accounts very simply. Let's say you opened one account with $250 and then got the $25 bonus. You could then open 5 additional accounts with no minimum, and start saving a different amount in each of them, even if you only want to start with $1 or $2. One could be for Christmas, the other could be for car repairs or a vacation fund, you get the picture. The no minimum CDs are great too.

It also makes it very easy to start a small savings account for a child. I believe you can even send an opening bonus or gift (it wouldn't apply to the $250/$25 bonus deal, but it might encourage a younger person to start saving money).

They also have this deal for tivo owners. http://www.ingdirect.com/tivo For $25

But Better to use a friend's link and have them get money also.

Code is tivo1

Semi-Elite, I actually wanted to reply to your signature, but it didn't come through. Apologies for derailing the thread a bit. OT/ RE.: good banks in Australia: have you tried St. George? We've been banking there for 3 years now and are reasonably satisfied with it.
As for good pizza, well, the only place where you can find really good pizza is Italy, of course...

I am currently an ING USA customer, but came across Captial One's 4% high yield savings account when paying my credit card (used for foreign transactions) with no foreign currency fee. Looks like Capital One slightly beats the ING rate.

Some info:
No fees to open or maintain your account
No minimum balance
Links to your existing checking account
FDIC insured for up to $100,000 per depositor
Convenient online account access

http://www.capitalone.com/savings/hy...h5o4A5SLdaMxOu