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I suspect there was an element of access and liquidity, especially for small amounts. It was a lot easier back then to go to your local bank to ask your teller

by herge 10y ago

I suspect there was an element of access and liquidity, especially for small amounts. It was a lot easier back then to go to your local bank to ask your teller to put money into your savings account than buy bonds, stocks, etc. Nowadays with e-trade and the like, it's as easy to use much more sophisticated investment mechanisms than back then.

jonknee 10y ago
That has zero to do with it. Interest rates around the globe are much lower than they were in the past (to the point of trillions in negative interest bonds where if you hold to term you're guaranteed to not get back your investment!). There is currently too much cash in the world without good places to put it, hence plunging yields. The short version: your bank doesn't pay much interest because they have no great higher yielding places to put your deposits to work. http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/29/there-are-now-117-trillion-dollars-worth-of-bonds-with-negative-yields.html http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/29/there-are-now-117-trillion-do...