Surrendering my Etiqa 2.02% after 3 years

It has been a good 3 years.

Back in 2019, I signed up for Etiqa's ELASTIQ plan which offers guaranteed 2.02% for the first 3 years. I started with $5k initial deposit first, and top up another $10k after since the interest rate environment then was bad.

Interest dropped

Now that 3 years is up, Etiqa has sent me an email informing of the revised interest down to 1.2%

Dear Valued Customer,

We hope you are keeping well and safe.

As COVID-19 continues to disrupt financial markets and economies, the prolonged uncertainty has made it challenging to maintain the existing crediting rate and loyalty bonus of your policy. We wish to inform you that the existing crediting rate and loyalty bonus for your ELASTIQ policy will be revised as follows:

Policy Number Revised Crediting Rate* after 3rd year Revised Loyalty Bonus Effective date

: xxxxx : 1.20% per annum : 0.00% of the average monthly account value for the past 36 policy months : xxxxx

*applicable to initial premium and top-up(s)

At this revised rate, your account value will continue to grow with 100% capital guaranteed. You will also enjoy the flexibility to top up or withdraw from your funds at your own convenience.

0% loyalty bonus

In addition, there was supposed to be a 0.3% loyalty bonus if you do not make any withdrawal for the past 36 months. Unfortunately, this has gone down to 0.

With this drop in interest rate, I will now be cashing out the full amount. 

Before: 

After:

Cash out process

Unfortunately, the withdrawal process is not that straightforward. I am not able to withdraw fully via their website. Instead, I had to email them and wait for the paynow transfer in 5 working days.

It's been a relatively good experience with Etiqa and I'll miss this interest compared to what I'm getting from DBS Multiplier. Hopefully, this $15k will grow further when I pumped it to other riskier plays.