CD Valet Shares August CD Rate Analysis, Revealing Yield Changes – Mostly Declines – Ahead of Potential Rate Cut

​CD Valet is a digital marketplace that connects consumers with the best CD rates and terms nationwide, helping community financial institutions effectively attract new deposits. The company today shared that approximately 74% of CD rate changes made from Aug. 01-Aug. 31, 2025, were decreases. These rate shifts are likely in anticipation of a Fed rate cut, possibly as soon as the September 16-17 Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
 
The share of rate increases during the same period was 26%, continuing a downward trend of CD rate hikes in recent months; 36% of rate movements in July and 42% in June were increases.
 
In its monthly Ratewatcher report, CD Valet analyzes its digital marketplace of over 35,000 retail CD rates, representing over 4,500 banks and credit unions, to uncover patterns and trends. There were 1,361 CD rate APY decreases in August, averaging 21 basis points. There were 468 rate APY increases reported during the month, averaging 36 basis points. Of these increases, approximately 57% impacted CDs with terms greater than one year.
 
Other points of note from the August analysis include:

• Of CD rates that did increase, the most common term was the 12-month CD, which comprised of 26% of all total rate increases.
  • The 12-month CD also saw the highest average increase at 56 basis points, up from 40 basis points in July.
• The yield curve remains inverted, also signaling the expectation for rates to decrease this fall.
• Of the institutions that increased CD rates, approximately 66% were credit unions while approximately 34% were banks, in line with trends from recent months.
• The average credit union CD rate APY was approximately 17% higher than average bank CD rate APY.

 
“As anticipation for a potential upcoming rate cut intensifies, many savvy savers are deciding to lock in CDs now to secure attractive rates. The financial institutions that aren’t optimizing their CD strategy – including thoughtful pricing and visibility – risk missing out on attracting deposits and building customer relationships,” said Mary Grace Roske, Head of Marketing & Communications at CD Valet. “The banks and credit unions that want to stand out are doing their research to understand both saver appetite and how peers are pricing and promoting their deposit products.”