There are many options to consider when looking to grow your hard earned money - stocks, bonds, the relatively new peer to peer lending, and of course - bank savings or deposits.
As a small and growing investor, I'm always looking for a higher yield investment, and despite deposits doesn't fit in my wealth building strategy, I have made some money in the past.
In 2019 I would favor peer to peer lending marketplace like Mintos.com over the hustle of opening a foreign bank account in a distant country just to chase a higher deposit rate.
- How To Open A Bank Account in U.S., As A Non-resident Non - citizen, Wells Fargo Bank
- Opening a Bank Account in Republic of Georgia
Both individuals and entities can invest through Mintos. Individual investors must be at least 18 years old, have a bank account in the European Union or third countries currently considered to have AML/CFT systems equivalent to the EU, and have their identity successfully verified by Mintos. At the moment, US citizens or taxpayers cannot register as investors at Mintos.
Affiliate link here: Sign up to Mintos.com here. By using this affiliate link for registration both you and I will receive — 1% of your average daily balance which should be paid in 3 installments for the first 90 days.
Remember - investments are risky, never invest more you can afford to lose.
According to the deposits.org research, these following countries offer the highest deposit rates in 2019 in national currencies.
Deposits.org provides the largest marketplace for retail interest bearing products for deposits, personal loans, home loans, credit cards, savings, SME financing and other exotic investment opportunities. We are the one-stop comprehensive reference for international financing and investment
Please note, in most case, a higher interest rate means higher inflation in a country
| Country | Inflation | Interest Rate | Currency |
| Argentina | 27.60% | 42,05% | ARS |
| Uzbekistan | 11% | 20.00% | UZS |
| Turkey | 7.80% | 17.75% | TRY |
| Iran | 15.30% | 15.00% | IRR |
| Mongolia | 8.30% | 15.00% | MNT |
| Ukraine | 49% | 15.00% | UAH |
| Kazakhstan | 5.80% | 10.50% | KZT |
| Georgia | 4.10% | 10.40% | GEL |
| Azerbaijan | 2.40% | 10.00% | AZN |
| Myanmar | 8.90% | 10.00% | MMK |
| Syria | 59.10% | 10% | SYP |
| Rwanda | 5.90% | 9.50% | RWF |
| Egypt | 13.30% | 9.00% | EGP |
| Turkmenistan | 9% | 9.00% | TMT |
| Uganda | 4.90% | 9.00% | UGX |
| Ghana | 8.80% | 8.90% | GHS |
| South Africa | 5% | 8.78% | ZAR |
| Nepal | 8.30% | 8.00% | NPR |
| Costa Rica | 7.80% | CRC | |
| Vietnam | 18.90% | 7.80% | VND |
Data source: World Deposit Rates
When speaking about higher deposit rates in 2019, we can highlight the following regions and countries: Former Soviet Union countries (Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan), Middle East, South Asia, and South America
As a foreigner living in Georgia, I've been using Georgia's banks in the past for savings, though I have got a very negative experience when dealing with national currencies - they are volatile. My February Savings Report - GEL Loses Another 16.5% Against USD; -17% Against EUR
As you can see in the above table, in some countries the inflation rate is far greater than the interest rate (Iran, Ukraine, Syria, Egypt, Vietnam).
I would be cautious when depositing in national currencies.
Here is the map visualizing countries and regions with the highest deposit rates in the World in 2019
Highest deposit rates around the World 2019
Now, let's see how about deposits in a more stable USD currency:
| Country | Inflation | Interest rate | Currency |
| Iran | 15.30% | 5.00% | USD |
| Cambodia | 3.20% | 4.75% | USD |
| Indonesia | 6% | 4.50% | USD |
| Ukraine | 49.00% | 4.25% | USD |
| Sri Lanka | 7.70% | 3.50% | USD |
| Zimbabwe | 8.30% | 3.50% | USD |
| Georgia | 4% | 3.50% | USD |
| Laos | 3.40% | USD | |
| India | 6.80% | 3.29% | USD |
| Kazakhstan | 5.80% | 3.10% | USD |
| Turkey | 7.80% | 3.00% | USD |
| Azerbaijan | 2.40% | 3.00% | AZN |
| United States | 1.50% | 2.75% | USD |
| Oman | 4.00% | 2.75% | USD |
| Afghanistan | 6.8%^ | 2.75% | USD |
| Bahrain | 0.30% | 2.55 | USD |
| Bermuda | 1.80% | 2.50% | USD |
| Hong Kong | 5% | 2.50% | USD |
| Uganda | 4.90% | 2.50% | USD |
| Cuba | 4.8%^ | 2.50% | USD |
Data source: World Deposit Rates
Now, this looks more interesting (despite lower interest rate) - in 2019, you could get up to 5% in deposit rates.
On the other hand, countries with highest interest rates are politically and economically unstable, by choosing to deposit at one of the above-listed countries you could actually lose some or all of your savings (in case the bank goes bankrupt).
it's interesting to note that interest rates have lowered in countries like Ukraine and Georgia if compared to 2018.