FNBO Direct is the online savings piece of the First National Bank of Omaha. FNBO has been around for over 150 years; pretty impressive for a bank. Benefits offered by FNBO Direct are no monthly fees, no minimum balance and you can open your online savings account with $1. Not bad so far. Currently they are offering a 3.50% APY and is accurate up to September 27, 2008. That’s all good, too.

To open an account with FNBO Direct, you need the usual suspects: social security, driver’s license or state id, current bank account, and you need to be at least eighteen. Unusual, however, is that they also want information on any loans or mortgages you have to help them confirm you are who you say you are. When you first begin placing funds into this account, you will be subjected to a two to four day hold while transfers clear.

On the plus side, FNBO Direct does offer you an ATM card so you can get money out of your savings account as needed.

Most people need to remember that a savings account is just that…savings. Many of the complaints that were filed for FNBO Direct were because they could not access more than six transactions a month without a fee. Well, yeah! If you will be using your savings account as a checking account just leave the money in checking. You’ll save on the fees.

The pluses on this account are the facts you only need a dollar to open the account and there is no minimum balance. The current rate of 3.5% is good for all the savings account amounts, not just for accounts over a certain amount. Also, you will have access via an ATM card so you have access to your account anytime. You can apply for both an individual account as well as a joint account and bill pay.

Minuses are the fees on the ATM if the ATM is not attached to a FNBO bank. It is currently $2.50. There is no overdraft protection on BillPay. You may need additional proof of identity when you open an account. This is due diligence on account of the bank and are protecting you as well as themselves in case of fraud but it can be a pain.

All in all it is a good little bank and has been around for a long time. They are branching out into other areas such as online banking. However, due to the need for additional identification, you may want to look at others. It is a good deal but I believe there are better.