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Equitable Bank, the Canadian alternative-mortgage provider, is jumping into the online banking business with a savings account that pays more than triple the interest rate of other branchless rivals.

Equitable started signing up customers this week for its EQ Bank, offering 3 per cent interest on savings with no fees or minimum balance requirements. The account allows daily transactions including bill payments, e-transfers and moving money via computer or mobile phone.

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“We’re certainly seeking to shake up the marketplace a bit,” Chief Executive Officer Andrew Moorsaid in a phone interview. “This is a digital bank built from the ground up, born in the mobile age of smartphones.”

EQ Bank seeks to grab some of the $400 billion in Canadian accounts that pay little or no interest, Moor said. The country’s big banks offer accounts that range from paying no interest to 0.6 per cent, depending on balances and features, while online lenders such as Bank of Nova Scotia’s Tangerine and President’s Choice Financial, part of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, have savings accounts that pay 0.8 per cent.