USD Time Deposit Rates in Taiwan Compared: Bank USD Time and Demand Deposits vs Short-Term Treasury ETFs and USDT Earn

USD time deposit rates do not differ much between Taiwanese banks: according to the posted rates on bank websites checked on 12 October 2026, 1 to 12-month terms at Bank of Taiwan, E.SUN Bank, Cathay United Bank and Taishin Bank were all around 2.00% to 2.10%, and USD demand deposits paid 0.45% to 0.60%. The bigger differences are in the short-term posted rates at digital-only banks and in promotional deposits that require new funds or currency conversion.

The short version:

• You don’t want to do much homework and need the money available at any time: a USD demand deposit pays only around 0.5%, so leaving money there has the highest opportunity cost.
• You want to lock in a rate for a while: traditional banks pay about 2.05% to 2.10% for 12 months; LINE Bank and Next Bank pay 3.50% and 3.40% for 1 month, but from 6 months on it drops back to around 2%.
• You are willing to meet conditions: promotions at E.SUN, Taishin and CTBC pay between 2.20% and 4.6% for 1 to 12 months, but you have to meet new-funds or currency conversion conditions, there are limits on the time window, quota and channel, and breaking the deposit early mostly means interest at 80%.
• Short-term Treasury ETFs (SGOV, IB01) had yield measures of about 3.7% to 4.2% in September and October 2026; you need a brokerage account and a wire transfer, and they are not covered by Taiwan’s deposit insurance. USDT earn adds another layer of stablecoin and exchange risk.

This article is a compilation of information and does not constitute investment, tax or legal advice, nor does it recommend any bank, ETF or exchange. The rates are posted rates and promotion details checked on each bank’s website on 12 October 2026 (some pages already showed a data date of 13 October, Taiwan time). Rates can change at any time and promotions can end or fill up, so check the bank’s current announcement before signing up. Interest figures are calculations at the rates of the time, not forecasts or guarantees.

This article covers only how much interest you can earn at Taiwanese banks if you already hold US dollars or plan to convert into them. For the extra risk taken on by short-term Treasury ETFs, Aave and Bitfinex lending, see Where to park idle USD and USDT.

USD time deposit rates compared: each bank’s posted rates

The table shows each bank’s standard posted USD rates from its website (fixed rate, annual), excluding promotions:

Bank of Taiwan also has a “large amount” column: 2.05% for 1 to 9 months and 2.10% for 1 year, but the posted rate page does not give the minimum amount for it, so you have to ask a branch. E.SUN also publishes floating rates, 2.00% for 1 year, lower than its fixed rate.

Digital-only banks post higher 1 to 3-month rates

LINE Bank pays 3.50% for 1 month and 3.30% for 3 months; Next Bank pays 3.40% for 1 month and 3.20% for 3 months. That is more than 1 percentage point above the 2.00% traditional banks pay for the same terms, and these are standard posted rates, not promotions that need a separate code. But from 4 months (LINE Bank) or 6 months (Next Bank), the rate falls back to 2.00% to 2.05%.

To keep earning the higher short-term rate, you have to roll the deposit over at maturity every month or quarter, and the rollover gets whatever the posted rate is then, which may have changed. Next Bank’s website also says its USD time deposits start from US$50.

USD demand deposit rates are mostly around 0.5%

USD demand deposits at the six banks pay between 0.45% and 0.60%. Roughly, US$100,000 at 0.5% earns about US$500 a year; the same money in a 12-month time deposit (2.05%) earns about US$2,050. A demand deposit’s advantage is that you can use it at any time, and that rate gap is the price.

Promotional and new-funds time deposits: higher rates, more conditions

Banks often run USD promotions that pay more than their posted rates, with more conditions attached. The table lists three promotions found on bank websites on 12 October 2026 that were still running:

Taishin’s rates for each term are shown as images on the promotion page, and I did not check them term by term; the table only gives the “top tier 4.6%” from the website headline. On the promotions pages of LINE Bank and Next Bank, I saw no USD time deposit promotions on the day I checked.

“New funds” and “conversion” are two different requirements

• New funds (E.SUN, Taishin): what counts is how much your total USD deposits at that bank have grown since a reference date. Breaking a time deposit at the same bank or moving money between your own foreign currency accounts does not count; Taishin also says money sent out and back in during the promotion does not count.
• Conversion (CTBC, and Taishin’s converted funds): you have to buy US dollars with New Taiwan dollars to sign up. If you already hold US dollars, you cannot use the CTBC promotion, and the conversion itself costs you the buy/sell spread.

If you already hold US dollars and want a new-funds promotion, you usually have to wire them in from another bank. Sending US dollars between banks may incur an outgoing wire fee, so check both banks’ charges before deciding whether it is worth it.

How USD time deposit interest is calculated, and what you lose by breaking early

Taishin’s posted rate notes say USD interest is calculated on a 360-day basis; Taishin’s and CTBC’s promotions also say interest is “principal × annual rate × actual days ÷ 360”. For US$100,000 deposited for 1 month (30 days):

A promotional rate applies only to that term. E.SUN and CTBC both say that a rollover at maturity gets the standard posted rate at that time.

Rules for breaking a deposit early differ by bank:

E.SUN’s and Taishin’s promotion pages also say the interest counts as annual interest income, and the bank withholds tax and the second-generation National Health Insurance supplementary premium as required by law.

USD time deposits, short-term Treasury ETFs and USDT earn compared

The short-term Treasury ETF figures come from IB01 vs SGOV. The two measures are calculated differently, so you cannot subtract one from the other to get a return gap.

Deposit insurance: foreign currency deposits are covered too, up to NT$3 million per bank

Under Article 12 of Taiwan’s Deposit Insurance Act, deposit insurance covers checking, demand and time deposits within the Republic of China, and foreign currency deposits are not among the exclusions; but deposits taken by a bank’s Offshore Banking Unit (OBU) do not count as domestic deposits. Article 13 says claims are paid in New Taiwan dollars.

The Central Deposit Insurance Corporation explains: each depositor’s principal plus interest at one insured institution is covered up to a combined NT$3 million. USD and NT dollar deposits at the same bank are added together. LINE Bank’s and Next Bank’s websites both say they are members of the deposit insurance scheme.

At the USD spot selling rate of 31.99 on E.SUN’s posted rates on 12 October 2026, NT$3 million is roughly US$94,000. How a claim is actually converted follows the Central Deposit Insurance Corporation’s rules.

All three carry the same exchange rate risk

USD time deposits, short-term Treasury ETFs and USDT earn are all priced in US dollars. If you eventually convert back to New Taiwan dollars, moves in the USD/TWD rate affect all three the same way, and none of them avoids it. What differs is how much interest you earn and what you take on besides exchange rate risk. USDT adds one more layer: its peg to the dollar can itself slip.

Short-term Treasury ETFs: you need a broker, and they are not covered by deposit insurance

SGOV and IB01 hold short-term US Treasuries and are bought through overseas brokers such as Firstrade and IBKR. Costs include the fee for wiring US dollars from Taiwan to the broker; I use LINE Bank to send US dollars to my US broker. For the differences between the two ETFs in structure, distributions and US estate tax, see IB01 vs SGOV.

ETFs are securities, not deposits, so they are not covered by Taiwan’s deposit insurance, and their prices move slightly every day.

USDT earn: an extra layer of exchange and stablecoin risk

When you put USDT in an exchange’s flexible earn product, the yield comes from the exchange and borrowers, not bank interest. Besides exchange rate risk, you take on the risk of USDT itself and of the exchange holding your funds, and the rate changes daily.

Five things to check before choosing a USD time deposit

1. When you will need the money: if you may need it at any time, a demand deposit or a short term is the only fit; breaking a deposit early mostly means reduced interest.
2. Where the money comes from: if you already hold US dollars, conversion promotions (CTBC, for example) are not open to you; for new-funds promotions, check the reference date and transfer window, then work out the interbank wire fee.
3. Whether you are looking at a posted rate or a promotion: promotions have limits on time window, quota and channel, and rollovers at maturity go back to the posted rate.
4. Your total deposits at the same bank: deposit insurance is capped at NT$3 million per bank, with USD and NT dollar deposits added together.
5. Whether to take on risk outside the bank: short-term Treasury ETFs need an overseas brokerage account and have no deposit insurance; USDT earn adds exchange and stablecoin risk. For how much extra yield each one earns, see Where to park idle USD and USDT.

FAQ

What are USD time deposit rates at Taiwanese banks?

According to the posted rates on bank websites checked on 12 October 2026, USD time deposits of 1 to 12 months at Bank of Taiwan, E.SUN Bank, Cathay United Bank and Taishin Bank paid about 2.00% to 2.10%. LINE Bank and Next Bank paid 3.50% and 3.40% for 1 month, but 6 months and longer went back to 2.00% to 2.05%.

What is the USD demand deposit rate?

On the posted rates checked the same day, USD demand deposits paid between 0.45% and 0.60%: Bank of Taiwan 0.60%, Taishin 0.55%, E.SUN, Cathay United and Next Bank 0.50%, and LINE Bank 0.45%.

What conditions do USD promotional time deposits have?

The usual conditions are new funds or currency conversion. E.SUN's Hao Li Duo Duo requires US dollars added after 1 October and can only be set up in the mobile banking app; Taishin's Xin Mei Li 3 counts US dollars added after 31 July, or funds converted after 1 August; CTBC's promotional time deposit only takes money converted from a New Taiwan dollar demand deposit. Every promotion has a time window and a quota.

What happens if I break a USD time deposit early?

For the three promotions in this article, breaking the deposit early mostly means interest at 80% of the posted rate or the promotional rate, and usually no interest if it has been held less than a month. Rules differ by bank, so read the promotion's terms before you sign up.

Are USD time deposits covered by deposit insurance?

Yes. Under Taiwan's Deposit Insurance Act, insurance covers checking, demand and time deposits within the Republic of China, and foreign currency deposits are not excluded. Each depositor's principal plus interest at one insured institution is covered up to NT$3 million, and claims are paid in New Taiwan dollars. Deposits taken by an OBU are not covered.

How do USD time deposits differ from short-term Treasury ETFs?

Short-term Treasury ETFs such as SGOV and IB01 had yield measures of about 3.7% to 4.2% in September and October 2026, higher than most banks' posted 12-month USD time deposit rates, but you need a brokerage account, you have to wire the dollars there, they are not covered by Taiwan's deposit insurance, and their prices move slightly every day.