Nationwide is winning the current account switching wars driven by generous cash bribes to move bank, according to new figures.
There were nearly 1.2million switches last year, with 309,290 in the last three months of the year, figures from the Current Account Switching Service show.
It marks the second consecutive year that switches reached over a million.
Britain’s biggest building society came out top with the highest net switching gains of 22,622 between July and September 2024, according to the bank-specific data, which is three months in arrears.
Since 2020, the building society has gained 361,800 net customers, followed by NatWest which has 219,847 new customers.
The below table shows which banks have gained and lost customers since 2020:
Switching banks was generally a fiddly process that involves changing direct debits and other payments and telling your employer your new details.
Cass, which launched in 2013, does that for you allowing customers to switch their current accounts online and will compensate you if anything goes wrong.
Any payments that are accidentally paid into your old account will be redirected, and most importantly, the switching process should be completed within seven days.
The figures, which mark the second consecutive year of over a million switches, coincide with more banks introducing generous offers to tempt customers to switch.
John Dentry of Pay.UK, which operates Cass, said: ‘2024 was yet another busy year for the Service, and these figures are ultimately being driven by increasingly money-conscious consumers.
‘Banking institutions, whether they be neobank disruptors or traditional high street banks, continue to present diverse, innovative and increasingly generous offers to win over hot-footed switchers.’
Some banks offered up to £200 to switch current account last year, although there were some stipulations which included setting up a handful of direct debits from the account to receive the money.
They have been a significant driver of bank switches. Nationwide ran a £175 offer on 24 September, as well as offering a 5.5 per cent savings rate on up to £10,000, and saw 22,622 new customers join in the third quarter.
Andrew Hagger, founder of Money Comms said Nationwide’s £100 fairer share payment ‘will also have had some impact of new customer sign ups’.
TSB had a £190 incentive from 1 August which resulted in a net gain of 12,282 between 1 July and 30 September, while Lloyds’ £175 offer brought in 10,018 new customers over the same period.
Barclays’ £175 offer which ran over the summer delivered a net gain of 18,503, a rare bright spot for the bank which has haemorraghed customers every quarter since the first quarter of 2020, apart from the final quarter of 2023 and third quarter of 2024.
‘It is more evidence that switching does bring in new customers – but the big question is whether the cost of acquisition is worth it and whether many of these customers soon jump ship for the next cash freebie,’ says Hagger.
‘For example NatWest had an excellent net gain of 60497 customers in Q1 2024 as it ran a £200 switching incentive from 15 February to 2nd April, but once the incentive was withdrawn it seems that some customers switched away in search of the next cash handout.’
Which bank are currently offering switching deals?
Switching banks can be a good way to earn a bit of cash, as the latest switching figures show.
Currently, four banks are offering switching incentives: First Direct is offering £175 to new 1st Account customers.
Nationwide is offering £175 to those who switch to FlexDirect and Santander £150 for its Edge account. TSB is offering £100 with its Spend & Save account.
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