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Raisin has launched a new cashback bonus paying up to £150 when you open a fixed-term savings account of at least a year.
The minimum deposit required is £10,000, which would net you £40 cashback at the savings platform. To earn £150, you’d need to stash at least £50,000 into an account.
Raisin offers fixed-rate, easy-access and notice savings accounts, with its best interest rate currently being 4.5 per cent on a three-year fix from RCI Bank.
However, it doesn’t offer individual savings accounts (Isas), so if you’re keen to save tax-free you need to look elsewhere.
Savings platforms let you compare rates from a range of providers and switch between them from just one account. They offer competitive rates of interest and a range of accounts.
Other savings platforms include Hargreaves Lansdown Active Savings and Flagstone.
> Open an account with Raisin and get cashback*
Savings platforms help you build your pot by letting you switch accounts easily
How much cashback can you earn?
Like many other cashback deals, Raisin is offering the bonus in tiers. The more cash you have to stash, the higher your earnings will be.
The offer runs until 30 April and the cashback will be paid into your Raisin account within 28 days after you open the relevant savings product.
You must use the promotional code ‘WELCOME’ when signing up, and the cashback will only be calculated on your first successful deposit. You can also only take up the offer if you’re a new Raisin customer. Be sure to read all the terms.
Cashback effectively pushes up your interest rate, potentially up to 4.88 per cent.
The best rate available on a one-year fix is 4.5 per cent, and we’ve looked at what this interest rate would be when you factor in the cashback on the minimum deposit in each tier below.
| Deposit | Cashback tier | Cashback interest rate |
|---|---|---|
| £10,000-£24,999 | £40 | 4.88% (on £10,000) |
| £25,000-£49,999 | £100 | 4.88% (on £25,000) |
| £50,000-£120,000 | £150 | 4.79% (on £50,000) |
| Source: Raisin | ||
This is Money says: This level of cashback is a decent return if you’re looking for a place to save cash, because welcome bonuses on cash savings are relatively rare. Find out more at Raisin*.
Your money is FSCS protected up to £120,000 and this applies for each partner bank available through the platform, so check whether you hold any money with the particular provider elsewhere.
Some of the high street banks launched cashback deals around tax-year end to encourage savers to switch.
This includes Barclays, which is paying between £50 and £200 for Isa transfers (or up to £600 if you have a Premier current account). You need at least £10,000 and a Barclays current account – the offer closes on 30 April.
Lloyds is also paying £150 cashback for every £25,000 you transfer to an Isa, with the maximum sitting at £1,200 on transfers of at least £200,000.
You need a higher level of savings to get started with Lloyds, but the cashback on offer for transferring £25,000 is £50 more than the equivalent tier through Barclays and Raisin.
The offer closes on 31 May and you need a Lloyds current account.
Keep in mind you can factor in current account switch bonuses to the above two deals to hike your earnings. Both banks are currently paying £200 for a regular switch, with Lloyds boosting this to £500 for a switch to its Premier account.
HSBC is also paying cashback on Isa deposits or transfers, up to £500 when you add £100,000 or more.
What about cashback from investment platforms?
Cashback deals can be far more lucrative if you have investments you’re willing to transfer to a new platform.
They regularly offer thousands to lure those with large pots to switch. Some of the best ones currently available include IG’s incentive of 1 per cent cashback up to £5,000* and Hargreaves Lansdown’s deal paying up to £4,000*.
To earn those maximum amounts, you’d need £500,000 and a cool £1million respectively.
Interactive Investor is paying between £100 and £3,000* and you’d need a whopping £2million to earn the top level.
When considering a switch, don’t decide based on attractive welcome deals alone. You should check that the new bank or investment platform meets your needs – have a look at interest rates, fees, the range of investments on offer, and any other features.
It’s no good going for cashback if huge fees will wipe out the earnings you made when signing up, for example.
Read our guides to the best investment platforms, the best self-invested personal pensions (Sipps) and the best stocks and shares Isas for more.
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