Spanish bank Abanca has launched a savings account that rewards customers with interest for running and walking — as long as they meet their daily step targets.
The B100 ‘Healthy Banking’ account pays customers up to 3.4 percent APR (up to a maximum of €50,000) if they meet daily step targets.
Galician bank Abanca presented the forward thinking account at an event in Madrid to showcase the bank’s commitment to caring for customer health and the planet.
“No bank in the world has so far linked savings to health, to contribute to improving the well-being of people, with such clear benefits,” said Jorge Mahía, executive director of B100.
The bank not only offers rewards for walking and running but also guarantees that 25 percent of the income generated by its ‘Pay to Save’ card will be donated to Spanish start-up Gravity Wave to fight plastic pollution in the ocean.
For the health account, users can link any health apps or step counters they have on their phones and set daily activity goals with B100. If the user manages to meet these daily targets, they will generate 3.4 percent in interest.
“It is one of the best, if not the best, remunerated account on the market. And the first product that links health with banking” Mahía explained.
Though the interest rate could depend on broader interest rate fluctuations and therefore likely be modified depending on the Euribor rate, Abanca promises it will always be in the upper band of the range. “We don’t want to make money on the health of our customers,” Mahía adds.
So, how does it work? Essentially, the savings agreements include health targets set in advance by the bank, usually between 6,000 and 20,000 steps a day. “The greater the challenge, the more the customer will be able to save,” explained Paloma Barreiro, head of digital products at Abanca.
For example, if they take 6,000 steps a day, €4 will be automatically transferred to the savings account. For 15,000 steps, it would be €15.
The maximum amount would be €30 per day if you reach 20,000 steps.
Therefore, over an entire year, the maximum amount transferred over to a higher yield savings account (if walking or running 20,000 steps per day for an entire year) is almost €11,000 (€10,950), if of course the customer has those funds in the first place.
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This is wrong and misleading. What the account does is allow the owner to have up to €30 per day transferred into the savings account if they fulfil the number of steps they declare. The money is simply transferred from another account run by the owner. This is not new money being given to them. The account earns interest, up to €1700 per year on €50.000 of savings, or €4 per day! Not €30 per day.