Jio’s Savings Pro promises up to 3x returns on idle cash

Can your savings account help you earn more on your money? Well, Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Payments Bank has just done something that’s set to change the way your bank account works.

Jio’s Savings Pro

Jio Payments Bank, which is a subsidiary of Jio Financial Services Limited, has launched 'Savings Pro’, a savings and investment account. You can operate these accounts like your regular savings account, but the twist comes in with what it does to your surplus money.

Higher returns

In regular savings accounts, you get returns at a fixed rate. These days it’s around 2.5% for most banks. However, the Savings Pro account offers up to three times higher returns.

You must be wondering: how does this account offer higher returns? It basically auto-invests your idle balance into overnight mutual funds. According to the bank’s estimates, these funds offer up to 6.5% returns. This, according to the bank’s statement, is based on the range of annualised two-year returns data across ‘Growth’ plans of overnight mutual funds.

How to invest?

According to the statement issued by the bank, any Jio Payments Bank account holder can upgrade to a Savings Pro account. Once that’s done, the customer needs to set a threshold amount of their choice, starting at ₹5,000 during the initial launch.

After this phase, any surplus funds in their account exceeding this threshold will be automatically invested into select overnight mutual funds.

Investing & redeeming

Jio Payments Bank has said that customers can invest up to ₹1,50,000 per day through this facility. On the withdrawal side, the SEBI rules regarding overnight mutual funds apply.

So, a customer has the flexibility to instantly redeem up to 90 per cent of their investments, with a maximum instant redemption limit of ₹50,000. Funds exceeding this amount can be redeemed within one to two working days.

Also, unlike other mutual funds, there are no extra charges for entry or exit. The bank also allows its customers to view eligible mutual funds, set or modify thresholds, and track returns on their investment – all through the JioFinance app.

Since Jio Payments Bank is a payments bank, the Savings Pro account operates with a cap of ₹2,00,000, the maximum permissible deposit limit for payments bank accounts.

The bank calls it “an industry-first initiative” and “an innovative feature” that enables customers to earn more from idle surplus funds in their account.

Smarter alternatives

Speaking on the launch of the product, Vinod Easwaran, MD and CEO, Jio Payments Bank Limited, said, “In an environment of softening interest rates, today’s financially aware customers are actively seeking smarter alternatives to grow their savings. Savings Pro empowers them to do just that by turning a passive bank balance into an earning opportunity.”