A viewer is asking what would happen if SaveBetter went bankrupt? The concern is that SaveBetter keeps track of all of the specific account date of its customers. The banks do not have this data. We’ll tackle this question tonight, and then I’ll turn to your questions.
We’ll start tonight with a discussion of how to invest during a recession. Then I’ll answer your questions.
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Timestamps
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0:00 – Welcome to the Financial Freedom Show!
0:38 – What Happens If SaveBetter Goes Bankrupt?
14:09 – What maturity is appropriate for bonds?
16:06 – Roth conversions before 01/01/2026
19:02 – Moving away from Vanguard
21:03 – Aging parents and estate plans/wishes
24:00 – Apple Pro Vision
25:19 – Going 100% VTWAX instead of VTSAX/VTIAX in a Roth IRA
28:54 – Betterment Cash Reserve accounts
29:55 – The last concert I went to
30:45 – Withdrawal rates/Social Security
37:19 – Should the 3-fund portfolio now be a 4-fund portfolio?
39:02 – 2-3 fund portfolio/My funds
42:51 – Building a bond ladder
44:52 – Ally No Penalty CD
46:54 – 3 or 4 fund portfolio in retirement
50:22 – Poll
51:16 – FDIC
53:02 – 2 or 3 fund portfolio vs Merriman Ultimate Buy and Hold portfolio
54:29 – M1
55:46 – Income Rider
57:46 – Building a bond ladder
1:05:48 – What maturity for TIPS?
1:06:19 – Investing in individual government bond vs government bond funds
1:14:11 – Investing in a small AUM/low volume etf/DSMC
1:16:08 – Bond fund vs Treasury bond
1:16:47 – Following Asset Allocation rules
1:18:06 – VTI vs SPY
1:20:01 – $50K in an IRA for a low income retired person
1:24:23 – 400,000 shares of Apple
1:24:56 – Rolling over a 401K
1:28:09 – Buying a 30 year bond
1:29:28 – Monitoring sleep
1:31:24 – Pass-through Insurance
1:33:30 – Announcements
1:35:44 – Financial Freedom
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ABOUT ME
While still working as a trial attorney in the securities field, I started writing about personal finance and investing In 2007. In 2013 I started the Doughroller Money Podcast, which has been downloaded millions of times. Today I’m the Deputy Editor of Forbes Advisor, managing a growing team of editors and writers that produce content to help readers make the most of their money.
I’m also the author of Retire Before Mom and Dad–The Simple Numbers Behind a Lifetime of Financial Freedom (
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Savebetter is a leading financial technology company that offers competitive savings options through its online platform. However, like any financial institution, it’s crucial to consider the risks associated with potential bankruptcy. This article aims to shed light on what might happen if Savebetter were to face financial difficulty and go bankrupt.
Bankruptcy is a legal process wherein a company is unable to repay its debts to creditors. While bankruptcy is not an ideal scenario for any business, it’s vital to understand the measures in place to protect customers’ funds and address potential scenarios.
One key aspect to note is that Savebetter is not a bank, but rather a platform that partners with banks to offer savings accounts. As a result, these partner banks play an integral role in safeguarding customers’ funds. In the event of bankruptcy, customers’ money would typically remain safe and secure within their partner bank, as it is held separate from Savebetter’s assets. These funds are FDIC-insured up to $250,000 per account, providing an additional layer of protection.
If Savebetter were to become bankrupt, customers would likely face some inconveniences in accessing their accounts. However, their funds would still be secure with the partner bank. In such a scenario, the partner bank would communicate directly with customers regarding the continuity of their savings accounts. They may provide options for customers to transition their accounts to other FDIC-insured institutions or even operate independently.
To address any concerns and uncertainties regarding such a situation, it is advisable to participate in Savebetter’s live Q&A sessions conducted in English. These sessions aim to provide customers with accurate and up-to-date information, enabling them to make informed decisions based on their individual circumstances.
Savebetter’s live Q&A sessions are an opportunity for customers to engage with company representatives, ask questions, and seek clarity on matters relating to the platform’s operations, potential bankruptcy, and steps to safeguard their funds. These sessions serve as an open forum to ensure transparency and maintain trust between Savebetter and its customers.
By participating in the live Q&A sessions, customers will gain insights into how the partner bank operates, what happens to their deposits in case of bankruptcy, and what alternative options are available, if any. Additionally, customers can seek guidance on the best course of action tailored to their specific financial needs.
In conclusion, while bankruptcy is never a desirable outcome for any financial institution, it’s important to understand the measures in place to protect customers’ funds and the steps taken to address such scenarios. Savebetter’s partnership with FDIC-insured banks ensures customers’ money is secure even if the company were to go bankrupt. Engaging in the live Q&A sessions conducted in English allows customers to stay informed, address concerns, and make well-informed decisions regarding their savings accounts. Remember to stay proactive, participate in these sessions, and seek expert guidance when needed to navigate any potential challenges that may arise.
For years now, including now, I could not understand why anybody would invest in a CD, with their lousy interest rates. Now, Treasury Bills are a better investment. First, they’re safer. Secondly, T-Bills have had higher rates. Brokered CD’s seem to have just recently caught up with them. Thirdly, you don’t pay state tax income tax on your T-Bill interest. I haven’t invested in a CD since the early 1980’s.
As far as the mutual fund with over 3000 stocks, some of those stocks have got to be dogs. That’s taking diversity a little bit too far. I’d rather have a fund that invests in the top 100 to 200 stocks in that fund. I bet it would have a better return and still be well diversified.
In 2008 I got out of most of my mutual funds. The only ones I kept was an international fund and a state muni bond fund. I figured I couldn’t lose money as bad as those mutual fund managers did. Actually, I’ve had better performance picking my own stocks and not having to pay their fees. My most recent purchase was a 17 week T-Bill, paying 5.2%. 17 week seems to be the sweet spot for rates, so I buy once per month.
Thoughts on treasury notes? It seems like it gets minimal to no talks; why is that? I'm in the lower age bracket of your audience, and I enjoy your personality.
Rob not a bank , but ftx allegedly has ‘records’ , but they were all bogus, couldn’t that happen to a wealthfront or save better?
Your discussion on Raisin (neé SaveBetter) only enforces my thoughts about them. To me, Raisin sounds a lot like Beam. Beam was a fintech that was not insured but kept customers' deposits in an omnibus account at a FDIC-insured bank. Beam, like Raisin/SaveBetter, paid above market rate on savings. Well, one day Beam suddenly up and shut down operations. The bank was fine and had all the money but did not know whose money was whose. Beam had gone dark and nobody was around to access the records.
After a few lawsuits and FTC investigation, somebody at Beam was forced to provide the bank with their customer records. The bank then sent out checks to affected customers. Not convenient. Not very easy, very much an inconvenience.
That is my fear with Raisin. They are paying above market rates but are not themselves FDIC-insured so they can go dark at any moment and our money is stuck until litigation runs its course.
25:19 I think you misread the two portfolios he was asking about. The first option was 100% VTWAX which is vanguard's global fund that includes both US and international. He was essentially suffering analysis paralysis between manually picking the international % vs using market cap weights.
I’m a bit new to all this but would it make any sense to use CDs instead of having any bond allocations?
There is a difference between owning a financial instrument (stock, bond, CD, T-bill, etc), versus owning “rights” to a financial instrument.
It appears that Savebetter customers own rights to financial instruments.
42:21 I'm definitely also in the camp of having a more complex portfolio than what I'd recommend to another person. Partly due to my own investment history and due to spending an unhealthy portion of my spare time studying asset allocation, I've ended up with a 7-fund setup I'm personally comfortable with. It'd never be my recommendation to someone else when the allocation can be approximated with three funds.
I used SaveBetter for a while but stopped using them when it started becoming a hassle to close no penalty CDs to get better rates. You can put your money in online but you can't close your account online. You have to call and the wait times got really bad. Haven't used them since. Not worth the hassle.
SaveBetter sounds like a Bernie Madoff deal
I’ve never even heard of Savebetter.
Some SaveBetter credit unions require that you become a member (application form). I am now on the mailing list of one. So they apparently do know who I am.
SaveBetter has great rates. But you cannot designate beneficiaries, nor hold the accounts in a Trust. Those are issues for older folks, like me. The best you can do is to have a joint owner on an account.
My local bank is one of the 20 some banks that offers HYSAs through SaveBetter. I spoke with a teller that told me that SaveBetter is changing it's name to Raisin within 30 days or so. Raisin is a German company that offers many of the same services as SaveBetter. I don't know if this is a merger or if they were bought by Raisin.
What do you think about an iul?