Charter Savings Bank: top savings rates from challenger bank


Updated on 02 March 2015 | 3 Comments

Challenger bank launches competitive savings accounts.

There's a new name popping up in the best buy tables - Charter Savings Bank.

The challenger bank has launched a range of savings deals, from easy access to long-term fixed rate bonds. But who is Charter Savings Bank? And what will you get for your money?

Charter Savings Bank: the story so far

Launched in January 2015, UK-based Charter Savings Bank focuses its energy purely on savings, as its name suggests.

It has no branches, so you need to apply online or over the phone. It promises that all products are very simple.

It’s part of Charter Court Financial Services (CCFS), a financial services business specialising in mortgages and savings. Charter Savings Bank is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, so the first £85,000 you deposit are entirely safe.

Easy access savings

Easy access accounts, as you can guess, allow you to withdraw cash from your account when you please, with no penalties.

Charter's account offers 1.25% and can be opened with £1,000. However, as the table below shows, you can do far better elsewhere.

Account

Interest rate (gross AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

Kent Reliance Branch Easy Access Savings Issue 1

1.5%

£1,000

In-branch

The West Brom Limited Access Saver*

1.4%

£1

In-branch

Earl Shilton BS Progress

1.4%

£100

In-branch, post

Coventry BS PostSave Easy Access (2)

1.4%

£500

Online, in-branch, post, phone

Teachers BS Premier Saver

1.35%

£3,000

In-branch, post

*Limited to six withdrawals

Compare easy access accounts with lovemoney.com

Notice Account

Notice accounts are similar to easy access in that you can withdraw money without financial penalty. The main difference is that you need to give your bank a specified amount of notice before accessing your cash; typically 30-120 days.

Charter Savings Bank is offering a 95 day notice account at 1.75% AER, again with a minimum deposit of £1,000. Here’s how it compares:

Account

Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

Al Rayan Bank 120 Day Notice

1.81%*

£250

Online, in-branch, post, phone

Charter Savings Bank 95 Day Notice 

1.75%

£1,000

Online

Shawbrook Bank 120 Day Notice Personal Savings Account

1.75%

£1,000

Online, post

Paragon Bank 120 Day Notice Account

1.6%

£500

Online

GE Capital Direct GE 100 Day Notice

1.55%

£500

Online

Shawbrook Bank 95 Day Notice Personal Savings Account

1.55%

£1,000

Online, post

Raphael’s Bank Sapphire Account (six month's notice)

1.55%

£5,000

In-branch, post

Julian Hodge Bank 90 Day Notice Deposit

1.55%

£10,000

In-branch, post

*Expected profit rate

Compare notice accounts with lovemoney.com

Fixed Bonds

Charter Savings Bank offers a range of fixed rate bonds so you can keep money locked away for between one and five years.

One-year and 18-month bonds

You can get 1.8% AERwith a one year bond from Charter Savings Bank, with a minimum deposit of £1,000.

Account

Term

Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

NS&I 65+ Guaranteed Growth Bond

One year

2.8%

£500

Online, post, phone

Al Rayan Bank Fixed Term Deposit

18 month

2.02%*

£1,000

Online, in-branch, post, phone

Harrods Bank 18 Month Fixed Rate Deposit

18 month

1.95%

£20,000

In-branch, post

Al Rayan Bank Fixed Term Deposit

12 month

1.9%*

£1,000

Online, in-branch, post, phone

FirstSave 18 Month Fixed Rate Bond 

18 month

1.9%

£1,000

Online

Shawbrook Bank 18 Month Fixed Rate  Bond

18 month

1.9%

£5,000

Online, post

Charter Savings Bank Fixed Rate Bond

One year

1.8%

£1,000

Online

Bank of Cyprus UK Bond

18 month

1.8%

£1,000

Online, in-branch, post, phone

BLME Sharia’s compliant Premier Deposit Account

18 month

1.8%*

£25,000

Online

*Expected profit rate

As you can see, if you don't want to lock your money up for 18 months or you aren't over 65, the Charter Savings Bank one-year bond is a cracking choice, bested only by the Al Rayan one-year bond.

Two year

The 1.9% AER offered by Charter is a fair way off the top two-year bonds.

Account

 Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

Al Rayan Bank Fixed Term Deposit

2.32%*

£1,000

Online, in-branch, post, phone

Harrods Bank 2 Year Fixed Rate Deposit

2.25%

£20,000

In-branch, post

Shawbrook Bank 2 Year Fixed Rate Bond Issue 27

2.2%

£5,000

Online, post

UBL 2 Year Fixed Term Deposit

2.15%

£2,000

In-branch, post

Close Brothers Select Gold Fixed Term Deposit

2.15%

£10,000

Post

*Expected profit rate

Three year

Charter is only offering 2% AER on its three-year bond, so again it's well off the pace of the best buys.

Account

Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

NS&I 65+ Guaranteed Growth Bond

4%

£500

Online, post, phone

Agribank Fixed Rate Savings Account*

2.7%

£10,000

Online

Close Brothers Select Gold Fixed Term Deposit

2.5%

£10,000

Post

Harrods Bank 3 Year Fixed Rate Deposit

2.5%

£20,000

In-branch, post

UBL 3 Year Fixed Term Deposit

2.45%

£2,000

In-branch, post

Shawbrook Bank 3 Year Fixed Term Deposit

2.45%

£5,000

Online, post

*Money protected by Maltese Depositor Compensation Scheme

Four year

Charter is a fair bit off the top of the table with four-year bonds too.

Account

Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

Vanquis Bank High Yield

2.61%

£1,000

Online

State Bank of India Fixed Deposit

2.6%

£10,000

In-branch, post

Shawbrook Bank 4 Year Fixed Bond Issue 8

2.6%

£5,000

Online, post

Kent Reliance 4 Year Fixed Rate Bond (Issue 8)

2.35%

£500

Online, in-branch, post

Tesco Bank Fixed Rate Saver

2.35%

£2,000

Online, phone

Aldermore 4 Year Fixed Rate Account

2.25%

£1,000

Online, post, phone

Charter Savings Bank Fixed Rate Bond

2.1%

£1,000

Online

Five year

Charter Savings Bank’s offering of 2.5% AER is nowhere near competitive when it comes to five-year bonds:  

Account

Interest rate (AER)

Minimum deposit

Access

Agribank Fixed Rate Savings Account*

3.3%

£10,000

Online

UBL 5 Year Fixed Term Deposit

3.02%

£2,000

Online, in-branch, post

Close Brothers Select Gold Fixed Term Deposit

3%

£10,000

Post

Secure Trust Fixed Rate Bond 9th Issue

2.96%

£1,000

Online

FirstSave 5 Year Fixed Rate Bond 9th Issue

2.95%

£1,000

Online

Paragon Bank Five Year Fixed Rate

2.91%

£1,000

Online

State Bank of India Online 5 Year Fixed Term Deposit

2.9%

£10,000

Online

Vanquis High Yield

2.8%

£1,000

Online

*Money protected by Maltese Depositor Compensation Scheme

So as you can see, Charter has decent deals on notice accounts and one-year bonds, but isn't a great option if you want to lock your money up for longer.

Compare fixed bonds with lovemoney.com

Current accounts are still better

[SPOTLIGHT]Bizarre as it sounds, current accounts still thrash savings accounts when it comes to returns.

The Nationwide FlexDirect account offers you 5% for the first 12 months on balances up to £2,500.

TSB’s Classic Plus account also offers 5% on balances up to £2,000, and not as a mere teaser rate - the rate won't fall after a year.

Or if you have a bigger pot of savings, how about the 123 Current Account from Santander? You can get 3% interest on balances between £3,000 and £20,000 with up to 3% cashback on household bills. Bear in mind there is a £2 monthly fee though.

Compare more current accounts with lovemoney.com

More on savings:

March 2015’s premium bonds winning numbers

Agribank: earn up to 3.3% on your savings

‘Pensioner Bonds’ to remain on sale until May

Calls for ‘digital financial passport’ to boost saving 

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