🔔 Provider Focus: Redwood Bank

Redwood Bank – a provider that offers savings accounts for businesses and charities.

As one of the newer additions to the market, this is an ideal time to give you some background information on the provider and a good opportunity to get your feedback from any initial dealings you have with them.

Remember to submit your review to rate Redwood Bank and your other providers to help us provide insight for your fellow savers.

Background Information

Redwood Bank launched in August 2017 and was set up to offer services to cater for small and medium sized organisations.

The journey towards launch started in 2015, with co-founders Jonathan Rowland and Gary Wilkinson’s aim to build a new, flexible bank for businesses.

Redwood Bank currently has two offices, in Letchworth and Warrington, which focus both on lending to their local communities and covering the rest of Britain through postal and online application channels.

In April 2017, Warrington Borough Council became a shareholder, the same month that Redwood Bank was granted its banking licence.

Redwood Bank Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). Redwood Bank Limited is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), so funds placed with the provider would be covered up to £85,000 per organisation, should it go out of business.

For more information on the FSCS, please take a look at our handy guide or call us on 0800 011 9705 to speak to one of our expert savings advisers.

Today’s Savings Market

It is fair to say that Redwood Bank entered the UK savings market tentatively at first, concentrating solely on notice savings accounts for businesses and charities, with interest rates that didn’t go straight into our best buys.

However, following a series of improvements to rates, Redwood Bank now features prominently in our Business Notice Account Best Buy Table.

There are currently two notice accounts available, one with a shorter 35 day notice period and a longer 95 day account.

The accounts are available to both businesses and charities and can be opened online or by post, with a minimum of £10,000.  

For alternatives and to compare the accounts to the rest of the market, please take a look at our Best Buy Tables or call us on 0800 011 9705.

Application Process and Customer Service

You can apply for the accounts above online or by post, with a minimum opening balance requirement of £10,000. Online only applications are common amongst many of the top savings rates at the moment, so the option to open accounts by post may be attractive to those who prefer not to use the internet for applications.

The application process is straightforward and we have not been made aware of any negative experiences so far from any of our clients or from our own dealings with the provider.

Of course, as mentioned earlier, your thoughts and experiences about providers’ customer service are invaluable for us, particularly about providers that are new to us or to the savings market, so please get in touch to share any feedback you have. 

A final word…

It is tempting to stick to the well-known brands when it comes to business savings accounts, but in doing so, you may be missing out on some of the best rates on the market. Whilst there are some exceptions, you can no longer rely on the larger brands and high street names to offer the best interest rates.

Providers like Redwood Bank are aiming to drive competition in the business savings market and offer some of the best rates available at the moment. The best strategy is to look at all options and take each provider on its own merits, considering alternative providers to get the best returns for your money. As long as you do your research (or ask us for more information!) and are comfortable with the provider, there is no reason not to consider them.

Submit your review here and help us provide insight for your fellow savers.

*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 (*).