Written by FCSA Business Partner, Octopus Investments.
US President Dwight Eisenhower liked to say he had two types of problems: the urgent and the important. “The urgent is never important, and the important is never urgent.”
What he meant was, the truly important jobs get shoved down the list because they’re not urgent. And the urgent jobs take up more time than they really should.
Take managing the surplus cash in your business. Getting the best savings rate is important. But not many people get around to switching banks to get the best deal. Because there’s always something more urgent.
It’s a shame, because in 2013 £160 billion was stashed in fixed-term accounts in the UK, and we expect this to have grown, earning hardly any interest1. The average interest rate on a one-year account from a high street bank is just 0.68%2. And people rarely switch banks to get a better deal. The average person switches once every 17 years3.
But then, that’s not entirely surprising, because switching banks is a pain.
Typically, getting the best rate means researching different banks, filling out forms, setting up new online accounts and creating passwords.
And even when you’ve done all that, you know the rates will change. So, there’s no guarantee you’ll still have the best deal in a year or two.
But now businesses have a better option
Small businesses are leaving money on the table by not getting the best fixed-term savings rates. It’s understandable – as we’ve just discussed, switching banks can be a hassle.
In 2017, Octopus came up with a solution. A way to get a great interest rate on fixed-term savings, not just this year, but every year. Automatically.
It’s really easy to set up and you get peace of mind knowing up to £340,000 of your money is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
The solution is called Octopus Cash.
The best rate on the market, minus the hassle
The basic idea is simple. You sign up to Octopus Cash, which spreads your money with challenger banks who’ve signed up to the Octopus Cash platform. You can deposit for a one-year fixed term or make your money more readily accessible in a 35-day notice account. The current rate for the one-year fixed is up to 1.67% and for the 35-day notice it’s up to 0.76% annualised. Way above the high street banks.
Then, when your fixed term runs out, you can choose to withdraw or lock up your money again. If you choose the latter, Octopus Cash automatically offers you a great available rate, time after time.
By working with challenger banks, which have sprung up over the last ten years or so, Octopus Cash enables you to benefit from these smaller and leaner banks, which pass the cost savings they make onto customers in the form of better interest rates.
And better rates are only part of the story. Convenience matters too. Better rates are no good if they come with a load of hassle and switching costs.
That’s why Octopus Cash was designed to be as simple to use as possible. Octopus deals with the banks on your behalf and handles all the paperwork.
As a business customer, you also get a dedicated relationship manager to make sure you’re getting the most from the service. It’s all part of Octopus’ multiple-award-winning customer service.
What about the Financial Services Compensation Scheme?
As mentioned earlier, all of our partner banks are covered by the FSCS. That means, if any of them were to fail, the government scheme will compensate any amount you hold with them up to £85,000.
If you want to save more than £85,000, Octopus Cash will split your money across multiple banks, to ensure you get full FSCS protection on your money. We currently work with four challenger banks for the one-year fix, and two for the 35-day notice. So, provided you don’t already save with any of them, you get FSCS coverage on the money we place with each of them, up to the £85,000 limit per bank.
Get in touch
Who are we? For the last 18 years, we’ve been building smart, simple and easy-to-use financial products that do what they say they will. We currently manage over £7 billion on behalf of more than 50,000 people and businesses.
We have a dedicated small and mid-sized business team, whose job it is to help small businesses make their money work harder.
We can help you decide if Octopus Cash is right for you and your business. So, if you want to see how you can lock in a great interest rate on your savings account – month after month, year after year – give us a call on 0800 294 6827 or email business@octopusinvestments.com and we’ll be happy to answer your questions.
Notes:
1Source: fca.org.uk, Cash savings market study final findings, January 2015
2The average one-year fixed term rate across Lloyds, Nationwide and Santander. No equivalent available rate for Barclays and HSBC.
3Source: guardian.com,. Switching banks: why are we more loyal to our bank than to a partner?, September 2017
Please read:
Personal opinions may change and should not be seen as advice or a recommendation. We do not offer investment or tax advice. We recommend investors seek professional advice before deciding to invest. Octopus Cash is provided by Octopus Co-Lend Limited, 33 Holborn, London EC1N 2HT, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (reference number 722801). Issued by Octopus Investments Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: 33 Holborn, London, EC1N 2HT. Registered in England and Wales No. 03942880. We record telephone calls. CAM06777. Issued: March 2018.
