REPORTS OF FREE CHECKING’S DEMISE MIGHT BE GREATLY EXAGGERATED

Free checking doesn’t seem to be dead quite yet. From Bloomberg:

Banks are struggling to replace lost fee revenue. About 45 percent of U.S. customers’ checking accounts are free, compared with about 65 percent last year, with an average monthly fee on non-interest-bearing accounts of $4.37 a month, according to a study released in September by Bankrate.

So nearly half of all checking accounts are still free. That’s more than you thought, right? Me too. Plus, as all those irate BofA customers walk out the door at Dick Durbin’s behest, their new banks will be sure to sign them up for overdraft protection in accordance with the new Fed rules. . . .