First reported by Bank Deals today (see note 1), Huntington Bank has recently launched a new direct bank, called DirectHuntington <directhuntington.com>. The 5.30% APR makes up for the name which is both backwards and hard to spell. Hopefully, the bank can secure domain-name rights to HuntingtonDirect.com, currently used by New.net Inc to post a couple generic banking links and throw a pop-up or two at unsuspecting users.
Huntington chose a color palette that makes it stand out from other financial institutions, a good move. However, the yellow 5.30% APR doesn't stand out as well as it should given its importance in the purchase decision (see sceenshot below).
But once again the CashEdge-powered online application leaves a lot to be desired (see previous coverage here and second screenshot below). But before you can even see the application, you must agree to the "Consent for Electronic Disclosure," a terrible first impression for someone who's thinking of sending you ten-grand or more (see screenshot below).
The upper-right Online Guarantee is a nice touch, but it links back to the main Huntington site which might be confusing for users (see screenshot below).
There is no mention of DirectHuntington at Huntington's main website <huntington.com>. However, there's a secret code (anywheresavings) you can enter into the Special Offers box that takes you to the direct banking site.
*Yet another direct bank
Note:
- The Bank Deals writer had a relatively uninspiring call with DirectHuntington's customer service when he researched the account.