Open a Citizens Bank checking account and you could earn a bonus of up to $120 a year. The bank’s Green$ense program rewards you for making paperless payments.

Any Citizens Bank checking account can be enrolled in the Green$ense program. Each time you make a paperless payment with a debit card the bank pays you 10 cents. You can also earn the bonus with online payments and automatic payments charged to your checking account or debit card.

Details of the Green$ense program include:

• Free enrollment, but some checking accounts have fees associated with them
• Must have 10 eligible transactions in a month to receive Green$ense earnings
• Maximum of 100 eligible transactions per month
• Existing checking accounts are eligible to enroll

The Green$ense program is aimed at helping the environment. According to Citizen Bank, enrolling in the program for just one year can save emissions equal to 87 miles of driving and save almost four gallons of gas consumed by transporting paper statements and bills. Being in the Green$ense program for a year can save more than 3.5 gallons of waste water and more than 7 square feet of forest.

Citizens Bank is based in Providence, RI. It has more than 1,500 branches and and more than 3,500 ATMs in various states.

Bank2 is offering a savings rate of 2.01% annual percentage yield (APY) and a checking account that earns 4.01% APY. The two accounts work together to help you grow your money.

The savings and checking accounts include the following features:

• No minimum balance
• No monthly fees
• Free online banking
• Free e-statements
• Direct deposit available
• $100 minimum deposit to open account

The savings and checking accounts also are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. There is unlimited check writing privileges and up to $50 of ATM fees are refunded during each statement period. When you open two accounts, the 4.01% interest earned on the checking account is automatically deposited into the savings.

The Great Rate Checking includes the following features:

• 4.01 APY on balances up to $15,000
• 1.01% APY on balances over $15,000
• 0.1% APY if you don’t meet qualifications for the checking account

The Great Rate Savings has a 2.01% APY on balances up to $35,000. If you have more than $35,000, the savings pays 1.01% APY on the portion above that amount. If you don’t meet the qualifications for the savings account, the interest rate is 0.1% APY.

Bank2 is a unit of Chickasaw Banc Holding Company, which is 100% owned by the Chickasaw Nation. The bank is based in Oklahoma City, OK.

Open an online savings account at HSBC Bank and earn 1.1% annual percentage yield (APY). That compares with the average savings rate of 0.8% APY currently being offered by banks. The savings rate is current as of July 24, 2010. The savings rate is variable and can change at any time.

Details of the savings account include:

• Open a savings account with as little as $1
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly maintenance fees
• HSBC checking account is not required
• Link non-HSBC Bank checking account to savings

HSBC Bank allows you to link as many checking accounts to your savings as you want. Recurring transfers can be set up between accounts. You also can withdraw money from most U.S. ATMs with an ATM or debit card. You can only manage the savings account  online and you have access to 24-hour customer support online or by phone.

HSBC Bank is part of HSBC Group, which is based in London. The financial services company has approximately 8,500 offices in 86 countries. HSBC also has over 475 branches located in the U.S.

Money in a HSBC Bank online savings account is insured by the Federal  Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) up to $250,000 per depositor.

Open an Everbank Yield Pledge Money Market Account and earn a 2.25% bonus rate for the first three months on balances up to $50,000. The regular money market rate for the first year is 1.51% APY as of July 23, 2010. The money market rates are higher than the average 0.78% APY being earned by money markets. Details of the money market account include:

• Minimum deposit of $1,500
• Free check writing
• No monthly maintenance fee when minimum balance is maintained, otherwise fee is $8.95
• Insured by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)

Everbank also offers a WorldCurrency Access Deposit Account that allows you to diversify your portfolio with major foreign currencies. Details of the money market account include:

• Initial deposit of at least $2,500
• $10,000 minimum to begin earning interest
• You can earn yields at foreign rates
• Easy transfers between global markets
• No monthly fees
• Insured by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)
• Identity theft protection and credit monitoring

The money market can allow you to earn interest in a foreign currency, potentially benefiting from any appreciation against the U.S. dollar. Currencies can fluctuate, so it is important to assess your tolerance for risk.

Everbank, based in Jacksonville, FL, is one of the fastest growing, diversified financial companies. The company offers products and services throughout the U.S.

SmartyPig has a 2.15% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings accounts. The free savings account can only be opened online.  You must deposit at least $25 to open an account.

The account offers a social component; you can set up savings goals and ask family and friends to help you reach them. You can use the SmartyPig widget on your account page and use it on Facebook or MySpace to meet savings goals.

SmartyPig has a calculator that can help you work toward saving for various events, such as a wedding, having a baby, or making home improvements. You can see how much you need to save each month for specific goals, but have the flexibility to contribute more each month if you have extra cash. The minimum savings goal you can set up is $250 and the maximum is $250,000.

After you’ve met your savings goal you have the option of taking the money in the form of a SmartyPig MasterCard debit card, have it deposited into your bank, or put it on one of the retail cards offered, such as Amazon or Lowe’s. When you get a retail card you can receive a cash boost of up to 12%.

All money in SmartyPig savings accounts is held at West Bank of Des Moines, which has been in business for 115 years.