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With the Bank of England Base Rate currently hitting four percent, banks and building societies are offering some of the highest interest rates seen in decades. Chase bumped up the rate on its easy access saver for the second time so far this year, but is it offering the highest returns on the market?
Easy access savings accounts have been gradually growing in demand over recent months, as rapidly rising living costs have seen more Britons needing increasing and instant access to savings.
Easy access savers are typically more flexible and simple to manage as they enable account holders to make payments and withdrawals with minimal restrictions and small opening deposit requirements.
From Monday, February 13, 2023, Chase boosted the position of its Saver Account in the market with another Annual Equivalent Rate (AER) increase to three percent.
Those with a Chase current account can open the easy access saver with no minimum deposit, and customers can own up to 10 of these accounts at one time.
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However, while the new Chase easy access savings rate offers more competitive returns than before, it still doesn’t exceed the current market-leading easy access rate.
According to Moneyfacts Best Buys, topping the leaderboard is Yorkshire Building Society’s Rainy Day Account (Issue 2) with an AER of 3.35 percent.
This account offers a two-tiered variable interest rate and savers can open it with as little as £1. The 3.35 percent rate is applied to balances up to £5,000, while a 2.85 percent rate is applied to balances over £5,000.01.
Withdrawals are permitted on two days per year based on the anniversary of account opening, plus closure at any time.
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The account can be opened online with £1 and up to £250,000 can be invested. Instant withdrawals are permitted and interest can be paid away or compounded.
Sainsbury’s Bank’s Defined Access Saver (Issue 39) is also offering AERs of 3.05 percent.
The account can also be launched with £1 and interest is paid on the anniversary at a tiered rate depending on the balance. A 1.05 percent rate is applied to balances up to £999, while 3.05 percent is applied to figures between £1,000 and £500,000. A 0.9 percent rate is applied to any balance over this.
A penalty will be applied if more than three withdrawals are made in a 12-month period, which will reduce the interest rate to 0.8 percent until the 12-month period has ended.
