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Anna Bowes is a regular contributor to the BBC’s Money Box, Breakfast and News programs, as well as the national press, providing expert analysis and commentary on the UK savings market. Anna has worked in the financial services industry for more than 20 years and for most of that time has been helping people to make the most of their savings. |
Adding to the good start to 2019 for savers, the last week has not disappointed, with some great new savings accounts once more pushing rates in the right direction.
One standout improvement is the one year account from Gatehouse Bank (2.15%). If opened via the Raisin UK platform*, you could be eligible for a bonus, elevating this market-leading rate further still. See our product of the week below for more detail.
Of course, our Rates Rundown will give you a bit more detail about this week’s movers and shakers.
This includes some interesting developments in the fixed rate cash ISA market, which has been one of the most improved categories over the last couple of years. As rates rise, the humble cash ISA is once again proving to be a potentially valuable tax-free allowance that shouldn’t be ignored.
🔖 Read: Fixed rate cash ISA competition increases, with rates at a two and a half year high
Inflation figures for December 2018 were out this week, meeting many analyst’s predictions by falling closer to the Government-set target of 2%. Coupled with increasing best buy rates, this means that there are far more savings accounts available which match or beat the current Consumer Prices Index rate of 2.10%.
🔖 Read: Bank of England’s target within shooting distance as inflation falls
We carried out some research this week into how banks and building societies rates compare with each other – and as many will be unsurprised to hear, overall building societies come out on top, although of course it’s never as simple as that. Find out why and what to watch out for by taking a look at the results of the research.
🔖 Read: Banks v building societies – building societies come out on top yet again
As you’d expect, high street banks don’t come out well in our research, usually paying some of the worst rates on the market to savers. So, it is with some surprise that we have seen HSBC buck the trend recently, launching some fairly competitive fixed rate bonds; head and shoulders above what their high street peers are offering, although still some way off making their way into our best buy tables. But credit where credit is due - well done HSBC, keep it up.
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