One company, BancVue, has already helped over 500 smaller banks and credit unions set up free rewards checking accounts.
So about two weeks ago, it introduced a rewards checking account that pays a whopping 4.49 annual percentage yield on balances up to $25,000 (and 1.5percentt on amounts above that).
For customers with lower balances who don't need branches, 3 percent interest on a rewards checking account won't mean much.
Let's say you're not among the many people who are doing just fine with their current bank, and you want to switch to one that offers the special rewards checking account.
Soon, the company asserts, the total number of branches among all of the institutions that offer its rewards checking accounts will equal that of the 10th-largest bank in America.
So when both President Obama and Senator Dick Durbin took to the airwaves to denounce Bank of America's new $5 monthly debit card fee this week, I got curious about what was going to become of the various rewards checking accounts I've written about in the last year or two.
If so, then a rewards checking account can really pay off.
Open an online high-yield savings account, choose a rewards checking account and sign up for a credit card that actually has reward points you can use.
At such rates, many rewards checking accounts are earning more than even the best high yield savings accounts at online banks.
Rewards checking accounts, most commonly found at smaller community banks and credit unions, are great options to quickly build up a savings balance through every day transactions.
If you check in using Gowalla at any real-world location in the US that is home to a moon rock, you'll receive a reward (check out this map if you're up to the challenge).
