This is just a quick note to say that, as good as FNBO Direct is, I’m no longer recommending them as my top pick in the online banking realm. Instead, you should check out Everbank. They’re one of the safest online banks, they have a slick online interface, and they offer an excellent yield.

A couple of weeks ago, I noted that we opened an online savings account with FNBO Direct. All in all, the account opening process was incredibly easy, and the test deposits showed up in our linked (local) checking account within one business day. Two days after that, our $1 minimum deposit had been pulled from our checking account and was sitting at FNBO Direct earning 3.50% APY* (current as of 08/14/08). While I haven’t had an opportunity to move additional money over to FNBO Direct, I wanted to go ahead and give you guys an idea of how things look under the hood.

Gaining access

The login process is pretty standard for a modern online bank. After entering your username, you’re prompted to answer a pair of security questions, and then you’re greeted with a personal message. Once you verify that the personal message is indeed yours (indicating that you’re really on the FNBO Direct website, as opposed to an impostor, you enter your password and you’re on your way. Note that the security questions or only necessary for your first login, or if you switch to a different computer.

Behind the scenes

Inside the FNBO Direct website, you’ll find a very clean interface including all of the standard options for an online bank (see below; click to expand). In fact, it’s so clean that it borders on boring. But guess what? Boring is good when you’re talking about an online bank. The pages all load quickly, and it’s easy to find what you want.

I had planned on including more screenshots, but there’s not that much more to see. There are tabs for managing your account settings, transferring funds (either amongst accounts within the bank or with external banks), and online billpay.

As I’ve noted in previous posts, I’ve been quite impressed by FNBO Direct so far — the combination of safety, a high interest rate, and a user-friendly website is pretty hard to beat.