The banks are battling to offer you an astonishing 5pc curiosity in your financial savings… if the place to look: Money professional SYLVIA MORRIS
Savers can get a generous 5pc interest on their cash without a penny to pay in tax as providers battle for the top spots on the best-buy tables ahead of Isa season.
The tax year ends on April 5 and savers are starting to pour money into their Isas to make the most of their annual allowance. You can save up to £20,000 free of tax, but any amount unused will be lost forever.
But know that these top rates may not hang around until then if, as widely expected, the Bank of England tomorrow cuts the base rate from 4.75pc to 4.5pc.
Isa season fell into obscurity when interest rates were at rock-bottom – this year, though, competition is heating up again.
Chip last week upped its rate to 5.15pc. Trading 212 quickly retaliated with 5.16pc. Moneybox has also recently raised to 5.11pc. Then there is newcomer Tembo at 4.8pc, a whisker ahead of Lightyear at 4.75pc. These rates come from app-based providers rather than online or branch-based accounts, so watch out for pesky terms and conditions.
Chip’s 5.15pc rate includes a 0.57 percentage point bonus for only six months, while the Moneybox bonus is 0.66 pc for a year. Tembo and Lightyear offer slightly lower rates but don’t have a bonus.
Isa season fell into obscurity when interest rates were at rock-bottom – this year, though, competition is heating up again, writes SYLVIA MORRIS
Be ready to move when the bonus runs out if the rate then becomes a poor one.
Some accounts also penalise you if you exceed a certain number of withdrawals that year. Moneybox limits you to three withdrawals a year. If you make more, the rate drops to a horrendous 0.75 pc for the rest of the year
Make sure you check whether accounts are flexible or not, too, as flexible easy-access Isas let you move money around without denting your allowance.
Trading 212, Chip and Lightyear are flexible while Moneybox and Tembo aren’t.
Be careful not to bust your protection under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, either. This guarantees that you will get up to £85,000 of your savings back should your provider run into difficulty.
App-providers deposit your money with different banks, though. You will need to add together the money you hold with these underlying banks to ensure you don’t exceed the £85,000 cut-off.
Tembo holds your money in Barclays and Bank of Scotland, for instance.
If you are happy with withdrawal restrictions but not an app-based account, go for the new 6 Access Isa (online) account from Coventry BS at 4.55pc with no bonus. It’s flexible and lets you take money out six times a year.
Principality BS Online Bonus 5 flexible cash Isa pays 4.7pc including a 1.55 point bonus and allows five withdrawals.
The top rate on online accounts with no withdrawal restrictions or bonus comes from Monument Bank at 4.76pc with its flexible online Cash Isa, but you need £10,000 to open it. Charter Savings Bank pays 4.57 pc on £1 with no withdrawal restrictions or bonus, but it’s not flexible.
