Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

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whodidntante
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Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by whodidntante »

I've had a Fidelity Cash Management account for years, but I've really only used to make ATM withdrawals overseas and at casinos. I decided to give it a go as my main checking account during January. Here are my impressions. It's worth noting that I churn checking accounts to earn bank bonuses, so I've seen what several other banks offer. More than I would like to admit. :twisted:

The bad:

Funds availability is very slow for deposited checks and ACH deposits. The account has plenty of money in it, and has been open for a while but I'm still being treated like I will take the money and run.
- A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
- ACH deposits are similarly slow to be available. I have not changed my direct deposit to go to this account. That *might* be instant.
Couple of updates:
- I can confirm now that ACH deposits pushed from outside are instantly available, including direct deposits.
- Fidelity has since added a free wire transfer send feature.

It is apparently not possible to deposit cash.

I would prefer to have a sweep account to SPRXX (Fidelity Money Market, 0.68% yield, 2.26% as of 2 March 2019), but this does not appear to be possible. The default core account pays almost nothing in interest. I have to manually buy after transferring money in. At least, that is the only option that is obvious to me.

It's not possible to link all of my accounts online for ACH. They insist that I fill out a form for some of my accounts. I have not had this same issue with any other bank.

The "manage cash" screen is poorly done. It takes a while to determine what I have incoming, outgoing, and in the core account versus money market.

The good:

I've used the bill pay option with success to pay my car loan and five credit cards. The car loan has to be paid by check, and Fidelity handled it just fine.

It will automatically sell SPRXX at the end of the day to cover my withdrawals.

The ACH limits are plenty high for me. Some of my other accounts restrict this so much that it can't be used by me, for example to two grand a month at one bank.

Can use any ATM.

Unlimited free checks and unlimited checkwriting.

You can buy mutual funds, etc., with deposited money within a few minutes for ACH, or the next day for a deposited check. This might matter if you are depositing a large amount and prefer to park it in a money market fund.

Convenient for the most part.

Free overdrafts is nice, though I'm more likely to overdraft due to ridiculous funds availability policies.
Last edited by whodidntante on Sat Mar 02, 2019 10:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
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FireflyGlow
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by FireflyGlow »

That's weird about the hold on checks that you deposit. I use my CMA as like a combination savings/checking account for larger expenses and I will often deposit large checks (such as a business reimbursement from work, etc.) that are $3,000 or so and I have *NEVER* had a hold placed on the check. I also don't keep much in the account either. Usually about $10K.

I keep this account because I deposit the rewards from my Fidelity Visa Signature 2% cash back in the account. There are other savings accounts with better interest rates (the CMA is .07 and I could open up an account at the local credit union with .1 or .15) but I like having the ability to transfer money and pay bills out of it, and the rewards from the Visa card usually post within a day or two.
sickman
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by sickman »

Have had a Fidelity brokerage account for 10 years but just opened a cash management account this morning to take advantage of the no-fee ATM's when I travel internationally in a few months. So your post was very timely!

The 1 week hold for checks is kinda crazy in 2017 (my BofA acct is just 1 business day) so I might have to go with another bank now and sounds like Ally & Cap 1 are best alternatives.
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

whodidntante wrote: The bad:

Funds availability is very slow for deposited checks and ACH deposits. The account has plenty of money in it, and has been open for a while but I'm still being treated like I will take the money and run.
- A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
This has not been my experience at all. It may be because you have a new account. I have had mine for about a decade.
- ACH deposits are similarly slow to be available. I have not changed my direct deposit to go to this account. That *might* be instant.
That is interesting - Fidelity is the one that processes ACH the quickest of any financial institution I know, in my experience.
Direct deposit is instant.
It is apparently not possible to deposit cash.
Yes, that is correct. Also not possible to get a money order. One of the biggest limitations with the account, to be sure. This is common to pretty much any online bank account.
It's not possible to link all of my accounts online for ACH. They insist that I fill out a form for some of my accounts. I have not had this same issue with any other bank.
Yes, have had that problem too.
Last edited by madbrain on Thu Feb 02, 2017 5:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

whodidntante wrote: Funds availability is very slow for deposited checks and ACH deposits. The account has plenty of money in it, and has been open for a while but I'm still being treated like I will take the money and run.
- A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
- ACH deposits are similarly slow to be available. I have not changed my direct deposit to go to this account. That *might* be instant.
I agree about the slowest and I have complained to them on multiple occasions. Their answer is they are not a bank, but go through a bank. Poor excuse IMO. I've had these accounts at Fidelity for 20+ years. They up your balance right away, but funds available for withdrawal takes forever.

Accounts with common registration can transfer immediately. My business account, a sole proprietorship, is treated like a foreign account, even though it is all at Fidelity. Although I'm the only person on the account it still takes 3-4 days for funds to be moved between my business and personal accounts. Really bad if you want small business customers.
Choy
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Choy »

Interesting, I've had the exact opposite observations.
  • 1. Mobile deposit check and ACH (pull) funds are available in 2-3 days.

    2. ACH push is extremely fast. My payroll actually posts and is available a day before it's supposed to be paid. I've had payroll deposited in other checking accounts and they were never available the day before.

    3. Billpay is the best feature for me for the following reasons:
    • a) You can select the due date and they will ensure the money arrives on time. You do not need to pick a date 2-3 days before the actual due date (which I've had to do with every other bill pay service I've ever used).

      b) They do not withdraw money from your account until the actual due date.
    4. Because of the way they set up sweep accounts, you can hold more than $250K and still be protected (not that I have that kind of money to put in a checking account :wink: )
Horsefly
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Horsefly »

I guess my expectations are different. I see and use my Fidelity CMA as simply an extension of my brokerage account. A place to epay bills, get cash from ATMs, and write checks (very seldom). I don't keep much money in the CMA. When I need some, I move it from the brokerage and it is available immediately. All ATM fees are reimbursed immediately (even when using a very expensive ATM in Europe). Overall, I'm pretty happy with my Fidelity CMA.

I don't have electronic deposits going into my CMA. They go to a bank, which I still use (for now). I also use the Bank's bill pay, but the first time I used the CMA one I noticed what "customer centric is": The bank asks you when you want to send the payment, shows you when it will be received, and blocks out dates you can't send it. Fidelity makes it about my needs, asking me when I want the payment received. It may be a little thing, but it certainly demonstrates that the banks still don't get who is in charge.

The only think I kind of which was different is the way they allow you to look at past transactions. Being an investment house, everything looks like a brokerage transaction. It's hard to search the history, and overall it is a bit clunky.

Steve
harikaried
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by harikaried »

whodidntante wrote:- A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
From my experience, it seems to depend on your account balance, frequency of deposits, and deposit amount. In the past, we only used the Fidelity account to deposit large checks (I believe Fidelity allows for up to $25k per check) then immediately transfer them out to our checking account, and during this time, we also experienced the 5-business day delay/hold on checks over $250. Here's my testing data: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=137384&start=50#p2907537

We now use the Cash Management account as our primary checking account with frequent deposits/withdrawals and maintains a balance for our emergency fund. I mobile deposited a several thousand dollar check on Monday two days ago, and it's available to withdraw today.
spammagnet
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by spammagnet »

I switched to a Fidelity CMA a few months ago. Our paychecks are direct-deposited to it. I haven't noticed any hold on funds because my balance is high enough that I'm not worried about when checks clear. (Not to suggest that I'm wealthy at all, nor that a hold does or doesn't actually apply.)

I particularly like the fact I can use my phone app to deposit checks far larger than allowed by many other banks, including my former bank, Wells Fargo. Also, all ATM withdrawal fees are refunded to me immediately.

I rarely need or have cash. I kept my membership in a local credit union for access to low interest loans and the rare need for cash or teller services.

I'm not refuting the OP's description but am personally unaware of the negatives and the benefits would outweigh them for me, anyway.
Cruise
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Cruise »

Deposits being held for a week before being released? Not for me. I never put a stopwatch to it, but I see the money being credited quite soon.

The reason I started to use the cash management function was that my local bank allowed me to mobile-deposit a whopping $250 a day. Fidelity allows me to deposit a check as large as $100K in some of my accounts (although I never pushed it that high).
Last edited by Cruise on Thu Feb 02, 2017 1:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
schwank
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by schwank »

I have used Fidelity CMA for over a year and love it. Direct deposits are immediately available. I use the mobile app to deposit checks ($14k check recently deposited with no issue) and it doesn't seem the money is delayed anymore than traditional bank account. I love the ease of moving money between accounts and the ATM fee reimbursement. Haven't figured out how to deposit coins but in that time I haven't needed to. No going back to a standard bank for us!
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

Cruise wrote:Deposits being held for a week before being released? Not for me. I never put a stopwatch to it, but I see the money being credited quite soon.
For those with posts similar to above, check under the balances tab then check the line "Cash Available to Withdraw". If you have a bill to pay that could be bad news. I transferred money from a bank to Fidelity to pay for a car. An institution to institution transfer. Fidelity showed receiving it in about 2 days. However, it was 9 days before it appeared as available to withdraw. I don't understand the issue that they need to hold it so long. This was not a check deposit.
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FelixTheCat
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by FelixTheCat »

whodidntante wrote: - A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
Why?

My company generates live payroll checks (no direct deposit). I use Fidelity mobile app to deposit my checks. The funds are available in 2 business days.
Felix is a wonderful, wonderful cat.
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

FelixTheCat wrote:
whodidntante wrote: - A deposited check will be made available in a week. I mobile deposited personal checks, checks from companies, and an actual paycheck and all were placed under a one week hold. One of the checks was for $12 and they still put a hold on it.
Why?

My company generates live payroll checks (no direct deposit). I use Fidelity mobile app to deposit my checks. The funds are available in 2 business days.
The key question is the funds are available for what? Withdrawal? Or just investment? Key difference.
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

Leif wrote:
Cruise wrote:Deposits being held for a week before being released? Not for me. I never put a stopwatch to it, but I see the money being credited quite soon.
For those with posts similar to above, check under the balances tab then check the line "Cash Available to Withdraw". If you have a bill to pay that could be bad news. I transferred money from a bank to Fidelity to pay for a car. An institution to institution transfer. Fidelity showed receiving it in about 2 days. However, it was 9 days before it appeared as available to withdraw. I don't understand the issue that they need to hold it so long. This was not a check deposit.
Where did you initiate the transfer from ? Did you send from the other institution to Fidelity (push) or did your request a withdrawal from the other institution through Fidelity (pull). My experience is that ACH pulls initiated from Fidelity are very fast.
ACH push from other institutions can be slow. I don't believe that is Fidelity's fault.
I have never seen a 9 days hold. Many of my ACH transfers have been for tens of thousands of dollars.
ACH push from Fidelity to another institution is also very fast, 1-2 business days, but usually just 1.
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

madbrain wrote:
Where did you initiate the transfer from ?

Fidelity - Pull.

Did you send from the other institution to Fidelity (push) or did your request a withdrawal from the other institution through Fidelity (pull). My experience is that ACH pulls initiated from Fidelity are very fast.

Not my experience.

ACH push from other institutions can be slow. I don't believe that is Fidelity's fault.

In my case I think it is Fidelity's fault. I initiated at Fidelity from a bank. They increased my balance, but funds to withdraw took forever. No reason, IMO, for that pulling from a bank. This was not a check. At first I asked if the higher amount was responsible for a delay. I was told no twice from two different reps. The third rep I talked to told me yes, the delay was due to the amount.

I have never seen a 9 days hold. Many of my ACH transfers have been for tens of thousands of dollars.

In this particular case it was in the high 5 digits for a car purchase. 9 calendar days.

ACH push from Fidelity to another institution is also very fast, 1-2 business days, but usually just 1.

My experience is 2-3 days to push.
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

Leif wrote: My experience is 2-3 days to push.
I just started a push this monday morning (very early monday, just after midnight), 5 figure amount, to my credit union. Initiated from fidelity. Funds were available at the receiving institution the next business day, ie. on tuesday. Really not sure why it's taking so long for you. Very quick ACH is one of the reasons for me to keep the account. ATM fee reimbursement is the main other.
Ron
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Ron »

Just a note on VG's ACH processing. My wife buys shares every so often of Vanguard Pennsylvania Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund with funds from her credit union savings account, using the ACH (pull) process while initiating the transaction on the VG screen.

Her VG transaction statement states "REDEMPTION PROCEEDS FROM SHARES PURCHASED BY CHECK OR THROUGH OUR MONEY TRANSFER SERVICES MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE FOR 7 CALENDAR DAYS AFTER PURCHASE WHILE PAYMENT IS COLLECTED. A CHECKWRITING REDEMPTION RECEIVED DURING THE SEVEN-DAY HOLD WILL BE RETURNED TO YOU UNPAID."

It seems that many hold funds to ensure that funds were transferred without problems before any further transactions can be done against the funds.

FWIW,

- Ron
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

madbrain wrote:
Leif wrote: My experience is 2-3 days to push.
I just started a push this monday morning (very early monday, just after midnight), 5 figure amount, to my credit union. Initiated from fidelity. Funds were available at the receiving institution the next business day, ie. on tuesday. Really not sure why it's taking so long for you. Very quick ACH is one of the reasons for me to keep the account. ATM fee reimbursement is the main other.
On the push from Fidelity that could be an issue with my bank, since they need to recognize the funds. Since most here seem to have good luck with Fidelity perhaps the issue is at my bank. This thread is prompting me to call Fidelity to see if I can get some answers. But is still takes 6 days to see withdrawal funds from a mobile check deposit.
Cash
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Cash »

Cruise wrote:Fidelity allows me to deposit a check as large as $100K in some of my accounts (although I never pushed it that high).
Good to know. Fidelity limits me to $25k but maybe that's because I don't keep much there. Alliant allows $50k by mobile deposit, but $100k would be great (I recently received a check for $51k that I had to mail in).
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

Leif wrote:But is still takes 6 days to see withdrawal funds from a mobile check deposit.
I know that mobile deposits can take longer, but I don't think it's as long as 6 days. I usually deposit checks to another account at Everbank where I can use my desktop scanner, which is much more convenient than mobile deposit which is always a bit of an issue with getting proper lighting (avoiding shadows) and focus. The Everbank web site uses a Java applet that interfaces directly with the scanner.

My credit union also allows uploading JPG or front and back of checks, but I have to scan the files separately on my own so it's not as quick.
Cash
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Cash »

whodidntante wrote:You can buy mutual funds, etc., with deposited money within a few minutes for ACH, or the next day for a deposited check. This might matter if you are depositing a large amount and prefer to park it in a money market fund.
So you can buy mutual funds immediately, just not withdraw the money?
Cash
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Cash »

madbrain wrote:
Yes, that is correct. Also not possible to get a money order. One of the biggest limitations with the account, to be sure. This is common to pretty much any online bank account.
Can't you have them send you a bank check? I thought I recalled that option.
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

Cash wrote:
madbrain wrote:
Yes, that is correct. Also not possible to get a money order. One of the biggest limitations with the account, to be sure. This is common to pretty much any online bank account.
Can't you have them send you a bank check? I thought I recalled that option.
No, it's not possible. No cashier check either.
stlutz
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by stlutz »

No cashier check either.
Their fee schedule says:

Cashier’s Check $10
Available by overnight delivery to customer’s address by calling a Representative, or in person at the Boston ongress
St. Investor Center. Cashier’s Checks, which are purchased with funds from a Fidelity account, are subject to a $10 fee (waived for Gold-level accounts)
Cruise
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Cruise »

Cash wrote:
Cruise wrote:Fidelity allows me to deposit a check as large as $100K in some of my accounts (although I never pushed it that high).
Good to know. Fidelity limits me to $25k but maybe that's because I don't keep much there. Alliant allows $50k by mobile deposit, but $100k would be great (I recently received a check for $51k that I had to mail in).
I'm not sure what is their algorithm, but it appears to be at least somewhat related to amount in the accounts. My account various limits include multiples of $100k, $50k, $25k, and $10k.
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whodidntante
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by whodidntante »

OP here. It's possible that Fidelity treats customers differently, but to clarify, I am referring to "cash available for withdrawal." You can see this amount on the manage cash page, or when you attempt to transfer out by ACH. The balance is updated quickly for me, and I can trade based on deposits quickly, but I am unable to withdraw the funds for several days.

I do not know what would happen if I write a check on funds that are deposited but not yet available. Fidelity would be within their rights to handle that as an overdraft. I might try a small overdraft just to see what they do. My overdrafts are covered by margin, so it wouldn't cost me much to test this.

I'm allowed to mobile deposit 25k per day. That's a reasonable limit in my opinion. I only handled two checks larger than that last year, and I have accounts at several banks in town due to my churning.
harikaried
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by harikaried »

whodidntante wrote:to clarify, I am referring to "cash available for withdrawal." You can see this amount on the manage cash page
Yup, I'm quite familiar with that page with my previous testing. As of right now midnight eastern time Friday, there is no longer a "Deposits Not Yet Available to Withdraw" section. This week I had a mobile check deposit, electronic funds transfer into Fidelity initiated from Fidelity, and a direct deposit from outside Fidelity.

Mobile Check deposit for several thousand dollars initiated 4 days ago on Monday and was available yesterday Wednesday.
EFT into Fidelity for $100 initiated yesterday and available to withdraw now.
Direct Deposit for a few hundred dollars notified of payment today and available to withdraw now. This never showed up in the "not yet" section today.

Note, when I say "now" it's effectively the next business day as it's past midnight eastern. So for our account, it looks like the mobile check deposit cleared "not yet available to withdraw" in 2 business days, EFT 2 business days, and direct deposit next business day.
madbrain
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by madbrain »

stlutz wrote:
No cashier check either.
Their fee schedule says:

Cashier’s Check $10
Available by overnight delivery to customer’s address by calling a Representative, or in person at the Boston ongress
St. Investor Center. Cashier’s Checks, which are purchased with funds from a Fidelity account, are subject to a $10 fee (waived for Gold-level accounts)
That may be new. The last time I tried to request a cashier's check on my Fidelity cash account, I was told it was not a possibility. They could not send one to me at any cost. I need $9000 to pay for a musical instrument. This was about 3 years ago. I ended up doing ACH from Fidelity to a brick & mortar bank. Fortunately, the ACH was quick enough.
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

whodidntante wrote: I do not know what would happen if I write a check on funds that are deposited but not yet available.
From personal experience the check will bounce. Happened to me as I tried to pay for a car.
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whodidntante
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by whodidntante »

Leif wrote:
whodidntante wrote: I do not know what would happen if I write a check on funds that are deposited but not yet available.
From personal experience the check will bounce. Happened to me as I tried to pay for a car.
Thanks for the data point. Did you have overdraft setup and enough cash or margin credit available by that route?
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Leif
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Leif »

whodidntante wrote:
Leif wrote:
whodidntante wrote: I do not know what would happen if I write a check on funds that are deposited but not yet available.
From personal experience the check will bounce. Happened to me as I tried to pay for a car.
Thanks for the data point. Did you have overdraft setup and enough cash or margin credit available by that route?
No overdraft. It bounced. The dealer was understanding and waiting for the funds to complete their transfer. I've made many posts here praising Fidelity. But they sure let me down here.

I've been with Fidelity a LONG time. When I called them I blasted them hard. After that I received an invitation to join some advisory group to Fidelity management. My advice, clean up their banking situation.
stlutz
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by stlutz »

No overdraft. It bounced. The dealer was understanding and waiting for the funds to complete their transfer. I've made many posts here praising Fidelity. But they sure let me down here.

I've been with Fidelity a LONG time. When I called them I blasted them hard. After that I received an invitation to join some advisory group to Fidelity management. My advice, clean up their banking situation.
I'm a Fido fan as well, but don't use the CMA because, well, Fidelity isn't a bank. They are a brokerage offering banking services. The CMA is fundamentally a brokerage account and will have the rules around funds availability etc. of a brokerage and not a bank.
harikaried
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by harikaried »

stlutz wrote:They are a brokerage offering banking services. The CMA is fundamentally a brokerage account
And being explicit about their fine print for the CMA brokerage account, they recommend their "Fidelity Account" for full brokerage functionality, which seems to add the Margin feature and Options trading. We happen to have a Fidelity Account, but we chose to transfer our ETF positions from TD Ameritrade to the CMA for the transfer bonus as we're not interested in those additional features.
arf30
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by arf30 »

whodidntante wrote: Wed Feb 01, 2017 5:48 pm I would prefer to have a sweep account to SPRXX (Fidelity Money Market, 0.68% yield), but this does not appear to be possible. The default core account pays almost nothing in interest. I have to manually buy after transferring money in. At least, that is the only option that is obvious to me.
I've been thinking about using the Fidelity brokerage account for my main checking (which has routing numbers, checkwriting, billpay, etc) instead of the CMA, since its core position is SPAXX (1.24%). I'd still have to use the CMA for ATM, since the brokerage account doesn't refund ATM for some reason, but you can set up the cash manager to keep the CMA empty and pull cash into it from the brokerage when a debit occurs. This would seem to be pretty close to the holy grail of checking/savings in a single account.

Alternatively it says you can call Fidelity and ask them to change the core position on the CMA, that might be worth a shot.
snowman
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by snowman »

Here are my 2 cents. Banks are clearly treating their customers differently. I opened CMA only about 3 months ago, and have been impressed by the speed of ACH deposit, as well as availability of funds for withdrawal. It's usually the next business day - I push money from CapitalOne 360 Monday, and it's available for withdrawal on Tuesday. Same with depositing check through their app.

On the other hand, my son opened Schwab account at about the same time (checking plus brokerage combo), and his deposits take literally a week, each and every one! We contacted Schwab CS together, as I could not believe this is happening in 2018. I wanted to know if this is because it's new account, and was told no - this is Schwab standard policy. So the next Monday, I wrote Fidelity CMA $5 check to my son, he deposited it online, the money was taken out of my account Tuesday morning, and it did not become available for withdrawal until following Monday!

Then I come here to BH and people rave about how great Schwab is, especially when it comes to ACH transfers and online deposits! And then I read this thread and cannot believe OP's experience with Fidelity CMA as it directly contradicts my own. I have no idea what criteria banks use, but personally I would have no tolerance for waiting a week for my money to become available to me, not in 2018.
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whodidntante
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by whodidntante »

snowman wrote: Mon Apr 23, 2018 9:51 am Here are my 2 cents. Banks are clearly treating their customers differently. I opened CMA only about 3 months ago, and have been impressed by the speed of ACH deposit, as well as availability of funds for withdrawal. It's usually the next business day - I push money from CapitalOne 360 Monday, and it's available for withdrawal on Tuesday. Same with depositing check through their app.
If I push funds to fidelity via ACH from an outside bank, then the funds typically show up available the next day. If I initiate the transaction from fidelity (ACH pull), then the funds are not available for several days. I assume that is because the initiator bears the risk for ACH transactions.
AustinRR91
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by AustinRR91 »

I decided to open a CMA account to replace my checking account because I was tired of the fees and other issues at my previous bank and my 401k, etc thru my employment is through Fidelity so I decided to streamline my accounts. However, CMA really should function in conjunction with a checking account. There are features I like, especially the use of any ATM, less fees, good customer service...but the funds availability times and clunky online features do cause me to regret foregoing a checking account in the beginning.

Similar to what snowman said, it must depend on what bank your funds are being routed through and the bank issuing the check or EFT. I have found ACH and deposits of checks (various amounts) to be painfully slow. With Capital One I would typically receive the full amount the following business day, with Fidelity it has been an average of 4-5 days before funds are available to withdrawal, although you may trade immediately.

An ACH pull initiated thru Fido from another institution was actually fairly quickly but that is about the only thing that has been quick in the 4 months I’ve had this account.

Once I added an actual checking account through another bank, this process was a lot smoother and I feel the benefits of the CMA could be appreciated.

Another big downside for me is the fact that even if I go into an actual brick and mortar Fidelity branch, I have no way to deposit cash or a money order! I think that this is a huge inconvenience and I’ve had to deposit the cash into another account and then later transfer the funds back to Fidelity via EFT. I can understand not wanting cash on hand at a branch, but money orders should be accepted in store, or at the very least via Mobile Deposit.

That’s my two cents, it is NOT a checking account and shouldn’t be used in lieu of such. But if you aren’t necessarily needing funds availability ASAP and you have another account elsewhere, there are definitely some benefits that can be appreciated from the CMA.
arf30
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by arf30 »

One drawback I've noticed with the CMA - there's a big delay between when a transaction actually happens and when it shows up on Fidelity. When initiating ACH pulls from other sources (Vanguard, Citi, BoA, Nelnet) they all show the money was transferred by the next day, but the transactions may not appear on Fidelity's side until a few days later - not even in the "pending" section.

This can be annoying when trying to figure out your balance.. Fidelity shows the money as "available to withdraw" even though I know it's no longer there. I'm guessing this is a side effect of using a program bank behind the scenes. Fidelity definitely doesn't stay in sync with the bank in real time - it's an overnight batch process at best.
gpburdell
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by gpburdell »

arf30 wrote: Sun Jun 03, 2018 9:51 pm One drawback I've noticed with the CMA - there's a big delay between when a transaction actually happens and when it shows up on Fidelity. When initiating ACH pulls from other sources (Vanguard, Citi, BoA, Nelnet) they all show the money was transferred by the next day, but the transactions may not appear on Fidelity's side until a few days later - not even in the "pending" section.
This is because ACH transactions usually take 2 business days to settle through the ACH network. If you initiate an ACH push/pull from another institution to Fidelity, then Fidelity won't know about it for at least a day. If this is happening over a weekend it can take even longer.

I've never paid attention if Fidelity will show a pending ACH transaction. I assume they don't show anything till it hard posts.

Now, if you initiate the ACH from Fidelity side then they'll show you the pending transaction immediately. However, the other bank would have the same problem in not knowing about it till it goes through the ACH network. I think last year "same day ACH" was introduced but it's still not real-time and not sure if all banks use/offer it.

From my experience, Fidelity shows direct deposits the fastest. I have my paycheck go to 2 different banks. Fidelity will always show the deposit the day I'm supposed to get it and it's immediately available. The other bank usually doesn't post it till the next business day.
arf30
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by arf30 »

gpburdell wrote: Mon Jun 04, 2018 9:30 am This is because ACH transactions usually take 2 business days to settle through the ACH network. If you initiate an ACH push/pull from another institution to Fidelity, then Fidelity won't know about it for at least a day. If this is happening over a weekend it can take even longer.
There's definitely an additional delay on top of this - comapring transaction dates from my previous bank I can see they don't show up in Fidelity until a day or two later - ie. a transaction completed on the 1st still happens on the 1st, but Fidelity doesn't seem to know about it until the 2nd or 3rd. It would also show as "pending" with the previous bank and they would adjust my balance accordingly.
mnnz
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by mnnz »

Opened a Fidelity Cash Management Account on 6/1/2018. This review is based on being (linked) with a Federal Credit Union and Fidelity Visa Card, the three provide a nice combination of benefits IMHO.

As some posted noted above and my own experience , in summary the pros are

- No ATM fees, freedom to use ATMs pretty much anywhere, fees were credited back account almost immediately
- Large Push/Pull Limits 100K/250K daily with ability to request above limit. Compare to Citibank-2k limit with 10k monthly limit
- Mobile Deposit up to 50K daily for my account (may be more or less depending on account)
- .2% Cash back VISA card with auto redemption deposited into core account / pay card directly from CMA
- Use of SPRXX or Premium Money Market as daily savings account and choice of 1/2/3 month CD's for short term cash
- Direct Deposit available immediately and very quickly to post
- On-line bill payment seems to work well
- CD's / 401 / and other investments centralized with variety of Auto Transfers, ladders, drips, rolls, auto transfer to linked accounts etc.
- Easy to add sub/joint accounts for college student 18+ /monitor debit transactions/transfer cash(student only accesses their account)
Venmo / Apple Pay were easily linked which is the norm on college campus as of this moment.
- Free checks / check writing including sub accounts (joint)
- FDIC to 1,250,000
- Free transfer of paper stocks into electronic by mail or drop off at fidelity location
- In the 12 or so calls I placed to customer service with newbie questions, they answered quickly, knew the information and were
very professional. So far no problems with C/S
- No crazy rules, surprise fees, ridiculous minimum balances to enjoy benefits
Linked to Federal Credit Union
- Use of all traditional bank services Money order, Cash deposit/large withdrawal etc
- Pushed money from Fidelity to FCU with no problems
- Use of Shared Teller Service to basically bank anywhere a network FCU is located, 6K branches
- Back up ATM card and 1.5% on emergency funds held in account


Fidelity Cons

- Slow to clear (cash available) deposited checks / pulled or incoming transfers, sweep sometimes slow (except direct deposit)
- Have to mail or drop off checks larger than 50K , however, was treated very nicely at fidelity branches which are nearby
- Mobile app is not bad, on-line software is a bit disheveled, wish they would emulate citibank software which is very clean and easy.

As noted by another poster, a pending transfer will not be reflected in cash available including the credit card payment quickly,
which may be confusing as to how much cash is actually available.
- No cash deposit / money order without linked bank.



Overall, for me, Fidelity works very well. Customer service has been excellent in my experience. It allows great mobility and control of you finances and investments. So far it has saved me time/money and works well for a regular guy with two college aged children.


Good luck!
Last edited by mnnz on Fri Jul 13, 2018 6:59 am, edited 1 time in total.
Freefun
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Freefun »

I don't understand the differences in hold times. I've been with schwab for many years and my deposits (up to 25k) are available some day.
Remember when you wanted what you currently have?
zeugmite
Posts: 1176
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by zeugmite »

mnnz wrote: Thu Jul 12, 2018 10:36 am Fidelity Cons

- Slow to clear (cash available) deposited checks / pulled or incoming transfers, sweep sometimes slow (except direct deposit)
- Have to mail or drop off checks larger than 50K , however, was treated very nicely at fidelity branches which are nearby
- Mobile app is not bad, on-line software is a bit disheveled, wish they would emulate citibank software which is very clean and easy.

As noted by another poster, a pending transfer will not be reflected in cash available including the credit card payment quickly,
which may be confusing as to how much cash is actually available.
- No cash deposit / money order without linked bank.



Overall, for me, Fidelity works very well. Customer service has been excellent in my experience. It allows great mobility and control of you finances and investments. So far it has saved me time/money and works well for a regular guy with two college aged children.


Good luck!
I'm still a bit confused from reading these about the amount that is debitable and hope to not have to individually test each case myself. Reading the disclosure PDF it says the first few places where debits are satisfied are: "intraday free credit balance" = intra-day deposits and settlement proceeds, then the Core balance, then MM fund balances, then a few other things that I don't intend to use.

The problem is, if you make a deposit there is a hold. If you sell a security, there is T+3. Even more confusing, I think unsettled deposits and proceeds can be used to buy securities, but not to withdraw, so even a Core or MM fund balance can be unavailable to satisfy debits. What is actually available and how can you even tell?

Edit: Answering my own question after some research. It looks like at least Fidelity MM funds are included in debitable cash, as long as the money in it has been settled through. Given this inclusion, the authoritative number to look at for how much money is immediately debitable is then the one in the "Available to withdraw" box in the Transfer window.
https://www.fidelity.com/trading/faqs-about-account wrote: Cash available to withdraw: Amount collected and available for immediate withdrawal. This balance includes both core and other Fidelity money market funds held in the account. This balance does not include deposits that have not cleared.
Last edited by zeugmite on Thu Jul 26, 2018 10:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
zeugmite
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by zeugmite »

Furthermore, there is the Cash Management feature of pulling in from an external bank account once the account falls below some amount. When that happens, does it behave like any other ACH pull deposit, i.e. it will sit there unavailable for days?
arf30
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by arf30 »

zeugmite wrote: Wed Jul 25, 2018 3:16 pm Furthermore, there is the Cash Management feature of pulling in from an external bank account once the account falls below some amount. When that happens, does it behave like any other ACH pull deposit, i.e. it will sit there unavailable for days?
Yes, it takes the usual 3-4 day ACH transfer time.
arf30
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Joined: Sat Dec 28, 2013 10:55 am

Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by arf30 »

I noticed today that the mobile app shows my check deposit limit as 10k for both CMA and brokerage instead of the 25k it used to show. Not sure if this is a global change or just my account, even though I've got more money at Fidelity now than in the past.
mptfan
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by mptfan »

stlutz wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2017 3:19 pm I'm a Fido fan as well, but don't use the CMA because, well, Fidelity isn't a bank. They are a brokerage offering banking services. The CMA is fundamentally a brokerage account and will have the rules around funds availability etc. of a brokerage and not a bank.
+1 Call me old fashioned, but I want to have my bank account with a bank, not a brokerage.
Dandy
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by Dandy »

I would prefer to have a sweep account to SPRXX (Fidelity Money Market, 0.68% yield),
I realize the OP wanted this account for international ATM reasons. But, the VG cash management account the Advantage Account uses the Fed Money Market Fund paying 2.16% last time I looked. I written checks but haven't used their Bill Pay. I don't recall any delay in moving money between VG and my banks and vice versa. I would be somewhat concerned that VG hasn't kept this product up to date but I believe other users have had few if any issues.

I was going to use it as my go to checking account when I opened it years ago but the dreadful money market rates made me decide to use a CU. Maybe it is time to reconsider. :oops: Why VG not only doesn't advertise it but actually makes it difficult to even find it on their web site is beyond me.
Last edited by Dandy on Tue Nov 20, 2018 6:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
stlutz
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Re: Review after one month with Fidelity Cash Management

Post by stlutz »

mptfan wrote: Tue Nov 20, 2018 2:44 pm
stlutz wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2017 3:19 pm I'm a Fido fan as well, but don't use the CMA because, well, Fidelity isn't a bank. They are a brokerage offering banking services. The CMA is fundamentally a brokerage account and will have the rules around funds availability etc. of a brokerage and not a bank.
+1 Call me old fashioned, but I want to have my bank account with a bank, not a brokerage.
Funny thing is, I've switched to using Fidelity as my "bank" since I wrote my original comment. When interest rates started going up it became too much of a pain to try and use a money market fund at Schwab--what should be easy (stash my paycheck in a money market fund until it's time to pay bills) just took too many steps.

Very happy with using Fidelity for this purpose--have done so for several months now.
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