As the year draws to a close, it's the season for diminishing returns when it comes to your interest-bearing accounts. As a result, we've made a list of some up-and-coming online offerings that will keep you from dwelling on the dreary economic climate. Our findings may not qualify as a cup of financial cheer, but they sure beat a lump of coal in your stock(ing) portfolio  Internet-Only Banks: High APYs on Interest Bearing Checking and Savings Accounts In general, online account interest rates are higher than their brick-and-mortar counterparts, especially for interest bearing checking and savings accounts. In many cases, the rates offered by a standalone Internet-only bank are even higher. A recent online study done found that for interest-bearing checking accounts, online banks pay an average of 2.06% interest, while the physical bank branches only pay an average of 0.24% interest. The result? Americans are increasingly opting in when it comes to online banking. According to NetBanker.com, 64 million U.S. households will either be banking online or using online bill pay by 2012.