A modern bank provides many services other thanchecking accounts. One of the most important ofthese is regular passbook savings.
If you went to a bank to open a savings account, you would go through almost the same procedures asfollowed in applying for a checking account. First youwould be asked to fill out a signature card. Then youwould be given a passbook in which your initialdeposit would be recorded. All deposits andwithdrawals from your account are entered into yourpassbook. This means that the passbook contains anactual record of all savings you have at any one time. With a regular passbook savings account, you would be able to withdraw money whenever you need it .all you would have to do is fill outa withdrawal order and present it, along with your passbook, to the teller.
All banks pay interest on savings accounts. The interest rate varies from bank to bank, butthe general range is from 4 to 6 percent. Banks also pay interest at different times. But themajority of them pay semiannually. Suppose, for example, that on January 1, you deposit$1000 in bank that paid 5 percent interest semiannually. By July 1, you would have earned $50 interest. The interest would automatically be credited to your account; and if you left it in thebank, along with your original deposit, you would receive interest on $1050 for the nest six-month period. That is, your interest would be compounded.
If you knew that you could keep your money in the bank for a certain period of time, youcould get a higher interest rate by buying a savings certificate. These certificates are for threemonths. You can also buy certificates for periods of one or two years. When you buy a savingscertificate, you sign a contract with the bank stating that you will not be able to get yourmoney back until the date when the certificate is due.
Another important service that banks provide is traveler’s checks. If you go on a vacation ortraveled on business to another cit or state or country, you probably want to bring sometraveler’s checks along with you. They have two important advantages over cash. One is thatyour money is always safe. If the checks are lost or stolen, you can receive a refund for the totalamount. Another is that they are more convenient. Many businesses are reluctant to cashpersonal checks on out-of-town banks. But with proper identification, you can readily cashtraveler’s checks almost anywhere in the United States or abroad. Every traveler’s check has itsown individual number. When you buy these checks (you must purchase at least $50 worth), the teller gives you a slip on which the number of every check is recorded. A copy of this slipis kept b the bank. If the checks are lost or stolen, you can bring this slip to the bank and yourmoney will be returned. Before you are given the checks, you are asked to sign each one ofthem at the top. When you cash the check, you must sign it again in the presence of theperson who gives you the money at the bottom. For this service, the bank charges 1 percent ofthe amount of the check. If you bought a $50 check, for example, you would have to pay$0.50 for it.
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除了活期账户，银行还提供主许多其他的服务。其中最重要的是存折储蓄。
去银行开一个储蓄账户的过程和申请活期账户大致一样。首先是填一张签名卡。然后银行工作人员会给你一个存折，上面有你第一笔的存款记录。以后每次存款或取款都会在存折上有记录，这就是说存折上会显示你在任何需要的时候取钱。取钱的时候只需要填一张取款单，把它同存折一并交给出纳员。
所有的银行都付利息给储蓄账户。各个银行的利率不一样，但总体在4%到6%之间波动。
各银行，付利息的时间也不一样，但是大部分银行都是半年付一次。比如说你在1月1号存入了1000美元，利息为5%，那么到7月1号，你就能得到50美元的利息，利息会自动存入你的账户。如果你将利息和原来的存款一起留在账户里的话，下六个月你得到的利息是$1050的基础上开出来的，就是说你所得到的利息是以复利来计算的。
如果你确定自己的钱将会在银行存比较长的时间，你可以买一张储蓄单据，这样得到的利息就比较高。你可以买$500的储蓄单据或者更多。储蓄单据开出的时间越长，你得到的利息就越多。短期的储蓄单据是三个月。你还可以买时间是一年或两年的储蓄单据。在买储蓄单据的时候，你要跟银行签一项合同，说明在单据最后期限之前你不能从银行取钱。
银行的另一项重要服务是旅行支票。如果你去别的城市，别的州或国家度假或者是出差，你大概会想带一些旅行支票。比起现金，旅行支票有两个重要优点：一是安全，如果你的支票丢了或是被偷了，上面的钱还可以如数找回。另外是方便。有些私人支票在城镇的银行兑不到钱，但是只要有身份证明，旅行支票在哪都能兑到钱，不管是在美国还是在国外。每一张旅行支票都有特定的号码。在买支票的时候(至少买50美元的)，出纳员会给你一张记录所有支票号码的单子。银行也会将这张单子备份保存，如果支票丢了或是被偷了你可以拿着这张单子到银行拿回支票上面的钱。在给你支票之前出纳员还会在每张支票上方签上自己的名字，兑钱的时候还要在给你钱的出纳员那儿再签一次，这次是签在支票下方。银行会收取支票面额的1% 作为手续费，比方说，你买一张50元的支票要付0.5美元的手续费。
