American Express National Bank CD

American Express National Bank is the deposit arm of American Express, and its CD is about as plain as a CD gets: pick a term, fund it, leave it alone. There are no branches, no monthly fee, and no minimum balance at all, so you can open one with $50 or $500,000. Interest compounds daily and is credited monthly, and the rate is locked once the account is funded. The number worth paying attention to is the 10 month term at 4.25% APY, verified at 4.25% on July 28, 2026 and still the top of the lineup in August. Everything else is materially worse: the 22 month term pays 3.75%, the 11, 12 and 14 month terms sit at 3.25%, the 18 and 24 month terms at 3.00%, and the 36 and 48 month terms drop to 2.25%. The 60 month term pays 3.00%, which is less than the 10 month. That is not a normal yield curve, it is a promotional rate on one term surrounded by filler. The fine print that actually costs money is the early withdrawal penalty. Under 12 months it is 90 days of interest, which on a 10 month CD is roughly a third of everything you would have earned. Between 12 and 48 months it jumps to 270 days, between 48 and 60 months to 365 days, and at 60 months or more to 540 days. Amex also does not allow partial early withdrawals or additional deposits after funding, and the CD must be funded within 60 days of approval or it is closed. At maturity it auto renews into the same term after a 10 calendar day grace period, so if you forget, a 4.25% 10 month CD can quietly roll into whatever Amex is paying that day. This is a reasonable fit if you already bank with Amex, want a short lock with zero minimum, and will actually diary the maturity date. The no minimum policy is genuinely useful for small balances that other banks price out, and Amex is a large, well capitalized issuer with FDIC coverage to $250,000 per depositor per ownership category. Skip it if you want anything longer than a year. Paying 2.25% for a three or four year lock in August 2026 is worse than leaving the money in a competitive savings account, and several banks pay more than 4% on 12 to 18 month terms. Also skip it if there is any chance you need the money early, because the penalty schedule is harsher than most online banks and you can end up withdrawing less than you deposited.