Free $1,500 HSBC bonus came through

A few months back, I blogged about a free $1.5k opportunity (link).

Well, it worked.

I get paid at the end of the month. I dumped $5k to HSBC via my employer’s direct deposit. The following day I pulled the $5k from HSBC to my Fidelity CMA/Brokerage on an automated schedule. Consequently, there was only 3 days of forgone interest ($5k * 0.015 * (3/365) = $0.62). The benefit was $750 gross, $517.50 net (=$750*(1 – 24% federal – 7% state)).

Since my wife and I both did it, we netted $1,035 (=$517.50*2).

Pulling it off required about 2 hours of work/frustration. On a pre-tax basis, this amounted to $750/hr. Unlike credit card bonus chasing, this involved zero hard credit pulls. Unlike credit card stuff, this is taxable (bummer).

The fine print says the account must be opened by January 6, 2020 if you desire to follow suit (link).

 

Below is a screenshot of my transaction history to give you an idea on how the timing works.

19 thoughts on “Free $1,500 HSBC bonus came through”

  1. FP – does it have to be from employer can we push 5K from another bank.
    Also the two 5K requirement very confusing. Not sure what to make out of it. One say “recurring” and other “monthly’ – so as long as the recurring is minimum at a per month basis we should be ok I guess. Appreciate if you can confirm if i you knew or had experience with bank push as opposed to employer paycheck. Thanks

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  2. FP – do you know if the deposit has to be from employer or can it be from a bank transfer. Appreciate if you have any experience or knowledge from your research. The info is all over. Also the two requirements of 5K is confusing, not sure if they just want to stress the “recurring” (2nd point) and “monthly” (3rd point) – meaning as long as its recurring at monthly rate summing 5K – we are qualified. If you think this is correct interpretation, pls confirm – will be helpful.

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  3. So you didn’t have hassles with ID verification, sending in utility bills, and the like? Did you have to call in? On Doctorofcredit a lot of people reported these kinds of issues with HSBC but it seems at least some more recent data points are positive.

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  4. After you got the bonus did you close your account? I did Discover’s bonus and am wondering if I should close the account or not after getting it.

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  5. I didn’t realize you can just transfer the deposit back immediately. I’ve always left the money there, waited for the bonus to hit, and transferred everything back. Thanks for this!

    Reply

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