The Deal
Chase Bank is offering a great incentive at the moment to sign up for one of their Business Checking Accounts. If you currently have either a personal or business account with them, you’re eligible to receive a $500 bonus after 60 days of account opening and meeting the minimum requirements. Even if you simply sell a few items on ebay each year, you have a business. Terms vary state by state, so read this disclosure before you apply. Remember that if you need proof that your business exists, sole proprietors can easily obtain an EIN or a Tax ID for their small business from the IRS website. If you already have a Chase Ink, you most likely won’t need this additional proof.
The requirements are actually pretty simple. Follow these easy steps and you’ll be $500 richer in no time.
How To
Step 1: Click on this link to be taken to the Chase website and input your existing log-in information.
Step 2: You’ll be taken to an offer page where your unique code will be displayed. Print the page and take it into a Chase retail branch.
Step 3: Present the banker with your printed offer and sign up for a Chase Business Performance Checking Account. It’s also worth noting that this is running as a soft credit check rather than a hard check, so your credit won’t be harmed (HT: DoctorOfCredit)
Step 4: Fund the account with $500 in “new to Chase funds” and maintain that balance for 60 days. After that time, your $500 bonus will be credited within 10 business days. Also note, there is a $20 per month fee unless you maintain a balance of $50,000, which doesn’t make sense considering the opportunity cost. However, after paying fees for 6 months you’ll still net $380
Step 5: Leave the account open a total of 6 months, or the bonus will be clawed back. Then, either cancel the account or downgrade it based on your needs. You don’t have to maintain the $500 balance after you receive the bonus, but you will still have to pay the $20 fee each month, so keep enough in the account to cover that cost.
Bottom Line
This is a great opportunity to make some easy cash on a checking account that doesn’t require spending on a debit card or a direct deposit, like most other banks require. I’ve had pretty good luck with bonuses like these in recent months. I just got a bonus for 50,000 AAdvantage points from Citi Bank for signing up for a checking account with them. Credit cards do the heavy lifting in my points portfolio, but checking account bonuses like these are a great supplement.