Math Problem Statement

If you deposit $10,000 at 1.85% interest, compounded daily, what would your ending balance be after three years?

Solution

To calculate the ending balance for a deposit compounded daily, we use the formula for compound interest:

A=P(1+rn)ntA = P \left(1 + \frac{r}{n}\right)^{nt}

Where:

  • AA is the ending balance (the amount you're solving for),
  • PP is the initial deposit (principal) = 10,000,
  • rr is the annual interest rate (as a decimal) = 1.85% = 0.0185,
  • nn is the number of times the interest is compounded per year (daily compounding means n=365n = 365),
  • tt is the number of years = 3.

Let's calculate:

A=10,000(1+0.0185365)365×3A = 10,000 \left(1 + \frac{0.0185}{365}\right)^{365 \times 3}

I'll calculate the exact value for you.The ending balance after 3 years, with a $10,000 deposit at 1.85% interest compounded daily, would be approximately $10,570.68.

Would you like more details or have any questions? Here are 5 related questions for deeper exploration:

  1. How would the balance change with different compounding frequencies (e.g., monthly, quarterly)?
  2. What would the ending balance be with a different interest rate, say 2.5%?
  3. How does daily compounding compare to annual compounding in terms of growth?
  4. What would the total interest earned over the 3 years be?
  5. How would the outcome differ if the investment period were 5 years instead of 3?

Tip: The more frequently interest is compounded, the greater the final amount due to more opportunities for the interest to grow.