The bank Espiritu Santo has hit yet another deposit yield record for itself, offering higher fixed-term deposits than it has in recent history. The Portuguese bank has also surpassed all other lenders, with the issuing of new certificates of deposit available after September 26 of 4.84% for new accounts.
Change is hard. At this time, deposits guaranteed by the football player Cristiano Ronaldo's advertising efforts are settling at the highest interest rates to be found in the market for 12, 18 and 24-month bonds. Still, the three time spans come with one setback: all of them are due simultaneously on September 30, 2012.
A few days before it happens, Espiritu Santo will decide to mirror what they will gave Ronaldo in his last publicity campaign for the bank in which the athlete shoots a quick goal when he has the opportunity to score.
The Portuguese bank will mimic this attitude in Spain in regard to its deposits. The test for this will be on Tuesday, September 26, when it begins to offer deposits with 4.84% yields. This interest rate is unprecedented for the lender who until now has offered maximums of 4.8%. It is also a record in this year's market. "We want to be increasing yields and payouts," said Pedro J. Escudero, the general director of Espiritu Santo's branch in Spain. Although "surpassing the 5% barrier would send the markets a message that our bank is weak."
