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Western Alliance Bank (Member FDIC) mostly offers business bank accounts. It does offer some great personal accounts through digital marketplace Raisin, though.
In fact, the Western Alliance Bank 3 Month CD is one the best 3-month CD rates.
Western Alliance Bank Overview
Western Alliance Bank is a Member FDIC bank based in Arizona, and it offers business bank accounts. It has brands throughout the U.S., including Torrey Pines Bank, Bridge Bank, and AmeriHome Mortgages.
Western Alliance's brands focus on business banking, banking for homeowner association management, and mortgages. The bank has personal high-yield savings account called Western Alliance Bank High-Yield Savings Premier, too.
It also offers CDs through its website and through Raisin.
Western Alliance's Partnership with Raisin
Western Alliance Bank has partnered with Raisin to offer high-interest CDs and a high-yield savings account. You can't open these personal accounts directly through Western Alliance, though.
Raisin is an online marketplace that started in Europe, and it recently expanded to the U.S. Accounts opened through Raisin have FDIC insurance. This means that even if you open a Western Alliance account through Raisin and the bank shut down, your insured funds would be safe.
Types of CDs Offered by Western Alliance Bank on Raisin
On Raisin, you can get traditional CDs from Western Alliance. Currently, there are terms ranging from 3 months to 12 months. Raisin offerings can change at any time though, so you'll have to keep that in mind.
Raisin has other banks to choose from if you're interested in getting a no-penalty CD right now. You'll have to choose a different place if you're looking for another specialty CD, like a step-up or add-on CD. Raisin doesn't offer these types of CDs.
Western Alliance CD Rates Today
Western Alliance offers a number of CD terms right now. Here are the CD rates:
| CD Term | APY (Annual Percentage Yield) |
| Western Alliance Bank 3 Month CD | 5.26% |
| Western Alliance Bank 5 Month CD | 5.30% |
| Western Alliance Bank 6 Month CD | 5.23% |
| Western Alliance Bank 9 Month CD | 5.15% |
| Western Alliance Bank 1 Year CD | 5.05% |
You only need $1 to open a Western Alliance CD. Interest compounds daily and is deposited into your account on the last calendar day of each month.
If you take out money before your term ends, you'll pay an early withdrawal penalty of 90 days of simple interest. Although this is a high penalty for a 3-month term, it's fairly standard for the other term lengths.
What Influences Western Alliance CD Earnings
The best place to make interest on your money depends on your financial circ*mstances and goals. The economic environment can also determine whether certain CD rates are more compelling than other savings options.
Role of the Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve is in charge of overseeing banks, managing the country's money supply, and adjusting monetary policy.
A committee comprised of the Board of Governors members, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York president, and four other Reserve Bank presidents have eight meetings per year to make decisions about monetary policy.
During these meetings, the federal funds rate may be adjusted, which impacts CD rates nationally. Banks often raise CD rates if the Fed lowers rates or increase CD rates if there's a rate hike.
Keeping tabs on upcoming Fed meetings can help you assess current CD rates and determine if they're competitive.
CD Term Length
Because of the existing economic conditions, short-term CDs have higher interest rates than long-term CDs. Western Alliance Bank CDs reflect this national trend because its 3-month and 5-month terms offer higher rates than the 9-month and 1-year terms.
One strategy that's used to protect against rate volatility is building a CD ladder. To create a CD ladder, you must spread your money across several terms. You can choose to deposit the same amount in each term or different amounts.
Western Alliance CD Rate Comparison
Western Alliance pays higher CD rates than most other banks. But you may prefer a different bank if you're interested in more term lengths or types of CDs. Here's how Western Alliance Bank compares to popular national accounts:
Western Alliance Bank CDs vs. Sallie Mae CDs
Sallie Mae CD rates range from 4.00% to 5.10% APY. Its rates are lower than Western Alliance's rates, and it doesn't offer a 3-month term at all. Sallie Mae CDs also require a $2,500 minimum deposit, while you'll only need $1 with Western Alliance.
However, Sallie Mae is a good option if you're looking for more CD term options. It has numerous term lengths going up to five years. Its rates are good overall, even if they're not as high as Western Alliance's rates.
It's worth noting that Sallie Mae also has some CD terms exclusively through Raisin. It has a 10-month CD paying 5.00% APY, 14-month CD paying 5.05% APY, and 14-month no-penalty CD paying 4.75% APY. And because it's through Raisin, you'll only need a $1 minimum deposit. So if you're open to banking through Raisin, you could open different terms with both banks and earn some of the best rates available.
Sallie Mae Bank Review
Western Alliance Bank CDs vs. Capital One 360 CDs
Capital One 360 pays 3.90% to 5.00% APY on CDs. Capital One CD rates are lower than Western Alliance's rates, and it doesn't offer a 3-month term.
But Capital One 360 has more terms to choose from than Western Alliance, with a $0 minimum deposit. It's also a good choice if you want to do all of your banking with the same company — Raisin doesn't offer checking accounts, but Capital One has one of the best checking accounts right now.
Capital One Bank Review
Western Alliance Bank CDs vs. Synchrony CDs
Synchrony Bank CD rates are lower than Western Alliance rates overall, but it has many more types of CDs. Its regular CDs have a variety of term lengths and pay 0.25% to 5.10% APY.
Synchrony has other types of CDs, too. The Synchrony No-Penalty CD has an 11-month term and pays 0.25% APY. The Synchrony Bump-Up CD has a 2-year term paying 3.60% APY. With a bump-up CD, you can request a higher rate once during the term if Synchrony increases its rate on the CD.
Synchrony Bank Review
Should You Open a Western Alliance CD?
Western Alliance Bank offers CDs on Raisin with some of the best CD rates nationally. These CDs are a good choice if you're looking for short-term options, and if an online marketplace platform sounds appealing.
If you're searching for a CD term over a year, consider other banks available on Raisin or explore other banks.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed Western Alliance CDs
To review Western Alliance CDs, we used our certificate of deposit methodology. We rate each account on a scale from 0 to 5.
For regular CDs, we looked at ethics, the mobile app, customer support, interest rates, minimum deposits, term variety, and early withdrawal penalties.
Western Alliance Bank CD FAQs
Does Western Alliance Bank offer CDs?
Yes, Western Alliance Bank offers 3-month, 5-month, 6-month, 9-month, and 12-month personal CDs through Raisin, a digital marketplace for high-yield bank accounts. You can also open business CDs directly with Western Alliance.
Are Western Alliance CD rates competitive?
Western Alliance CDs have higher rates than average CDs. The terms available are under one year, though. You'll have to choose a different bank if you want to open a long-term CD.
How often does Western Alliance change their CD rates?
Western Alliance CD rates on Raisin can change at any time. On a national scale, CD rates often change when the Fed adjusts the federal funds rate. Furthermore, Raisin is an online marketplace, so the banks it works with can change, too.
Do Western Alliance CDs offer any unique features?
You can open a Western Alliance CD on Raisin with $1 or more. There aren't any specialty Western Alliance CDs on Raisin, like add-on or bump-up CDs.
Are Western Alliance CDs FDIC-insured?
Western Alliance is a Member FDIC bank, so up to $250,000 is insured per account holder, per ownership category.
Banking Editor
Sophia Acevedo is a banking editor at Business Insider. She is a banking expert, and has about three years of experience reviewing banking products and analyzing savings and CD trends.Sophia oversees Personal Finance Insider's banking vertical. She edits and writes bank reviews, banking guides, and banking, budgeting, and savings articles for the Personal Finance Insider team.Sophia joined Business Insider in July 2021. Sophia is an alumna of California State University Fullerton, where she studied journalism and minored in political science. She is based in Southern California.You can reach out to her on Twitter at @sophieacvdo or email sacevedo@businessinsider.com.Read more about how Personal Finance Insider chooses, rates, and covers financial products and services »Below are links to some of her most popular stories:
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Evelyn He is a Compliance and Operations Associate on the Personal Finance team to ensure content accuracy and editorial independence so readers get up-to-date and objective financial advice.The compliance team's mission is to provide readers with fact-checked and current stories so they can make informed financial decisions. The team also works to minimize risk for partners by ensuring language is clear, precise, and fully compliant with regulatory and partner marketing guidelines that align with the editorial team.
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