The interest rate on 12-month fixed deposits is currently as high as 2.75%. It was last above that in November 1998, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore data, and the rate has been stuck below 1% for most of the past 20 years.
Singapore bank customers are enduring hours-long waits as they race to lock in the highest interest rates on fixed deposits since the end of the Asian financial crisis almost 24 years ago.
Several lenders in the city-state are dangling promotional interest rates as high as 2.8% on Singapore dollar fixed deposits for 24-month terms, surpassing the 2.6% return on Singapore Savings Bonds.
