The big news this week is inflation. With inflation rising, it has never been more important to make sure that your cash is working as hard as possible. And while there are no savings accounts available that are paying more than the latest rate of inflation, there is still competition pushing the best buy rates up.
RATES ARE CORRECT AS AT THE TIME OF PUBLICATION (25/06/2021). All up-to-date rates can be found on our Best Buy tables.
A little good news and a little bad news in the Easy Access best buy tables. First the good news – yet another provider in the form of Charter Savings Bank challenged Atom Bank and Cynergy Bank to match them in the top spot with its Easy Access – Issue 21 offering 0.50% AER. The minimum is £5,000 but the account can be opened by post as well as online, and there is no bonus to watch out for.
But now the bad news! Atom Bank withdrew its 0.50% Instant Saver and launched a new issue paying just 0.35% AER. Those who managed to open the account before the new lower paying version was launched will still earn 0.50% for the time being, but it is one less account available for new savers.
Although the activity in the Notice Account table has not been particularly sparkling, there is a new leader! Secure Trust Bank has launched a new 120 Day Notice Account paying a table topping 0.75% AER.
And Charter Savings Bank launched a new issue of its 120 Day Notice Account (Issue 22) paying 0.72% AER.
So now, all of the top five accounts are paying 0.70% or more. Just a month ago the best you could earn was 0.67%, so there’s been a marked improvement.
There’s been quite a battle in the 1-year Fixed Rate Bond table over the last couple of weeks which concluded with a new top rate of 1.06% AER from UBL UK, launched on Friday, the highest rate since October 2020!
After the disappointment of Aldermore withdrawing its 1% 1-year bond at the beginning of the month, there have been a couple of 1% hopefuls. Shawbrook Bank took the top spot for a while paying 1% then Smart Save joined the fray briefly with a bond offering 1.01% AER, before being withdrawn within three days, after which OakNorth joined Shawbrook at the top - again paying 1% AER. But for the time being, the fight has been won by UBL. The good news is, it’s all moving in the right direction.
Wesleyan Bank has been the been hero of the rest of the fixed rate tables, launching a stable of table topping accounts paying 1.15% AER for 2-years, 1.30% AER for 3-years, 1.35% AER for 4-years and 1.60% AER for 5-years.
In the 2-year table, Wesleyan’s victory has ended a period that has seen the early contender, UBL with a once market leading rate of 1.11% AER fall to the bottom of the top five as ZOPA, then Close Brothers and Kent Reliance have edged above them with bonds paying 1.12% AER.
Over three years, many of the same contenders plus Cynergy Bank have been pushing rates up and now the worst rate in our top five is paying 1.21% AER. Two weeks ago, accounts paying 1.10% were still featuring and only a couple of months ago there was nothing paying even 1% AER over three years.
It’s been quieter in the 5-year table, but great to see that rate of 1.60% AER from Wesleyan Bank, a rate we’ve not seen since the end of last year.
There’s not been much to report, especially among the longer term Fixed Rate ISAs. Over 5-years there has been no activity at all over the last three weeks!
However, UBL is once again topping the 1-year table with a new ISA paying 0.71% AER. In our last Rates Rundown the best 1-year ISA on offer was paying just 0.56% AER.
Prior to UBL’s last minute rise to glory, Shawbrook Bank, Kent Reliance and OakNorth Bank had all been jostling for the top spot, pushing things in the right direction.
Over 2-years Shawbrook Bank and Close Brothers have leap-frogged UBL to take the crown, both paying 0.85% AER.
A significant move in the Variable Rate ISA table was the launch of yet another issue of Cynergy Bank’s Online ISA. This time Issue 14 has not only stretched even further away from the pack but with a rate of 0.54% AER, it’s actually paying a better rate than the non ISA easy access best buy equivalent and its own easy access offering paying 0.50% AER. What will Cynergy Bank do next? Or will someone else challenge them?
Gatehouse Bank has decided to claim back it’s crown from BLME by launching best buy rates not once, but twice over the last two weeks. Over one and two years, Gatehouse is once more paying more than the non Sharia Fixed Rate Bond equivalents by offering 1.10% AER and 1.20% AER Expected Profit Rates respectively and over 5-years is matching the new leader Wesleyan with a bond paying 1.60% AER.
Definitely worth a look and great to see Sharia accounts leading the way again.
How much longer we’re going to see these improvements is anyone’s guess – so keep a close eye on the best buy tables.
*We are occasionally paid by some providers if you click through from our Best Buy Tables and open a savings or current account with them. We will never accept a payment that compromises in any way our independent, whole of market approach to providing information on savings products. For clarity we will indicate those companies who remunerate us with an asterisk (*).
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