Savings Focus: RCI Bank’s market leading instant access and fixed rate selections
RCI Bank is a relative newcomer to the UK, but is currently offering some of the best deals out there. We take a closer look at their story as well as reveal their market leading and award winning instant access account and their top fixed rate bond deals.
RCI Bank
The story behind RCI Bank is a unique one since it originated from the Renault Group, one of the world’s largest car companies. Developed as their own internal bank, RCI Banque was founded in 1974 and was created in order to meet the need to help customers finance their vehicles. Forty years later and the RCI Banque group is still privately owned by the Renault Group and operates in 37 countries across every continent, lending over €12 billion a year. RCI Bank launched in the UK in 2015 in conjunction with RCI Financial Services who combined have over 200 staff and lend over £2 billion each year.
Current selections
Despite only launching earlier this year, RCI Bank already has a compelling range of award-winning products. With a range covering a market leading instant access account and fixed term savings accounts up to two years, the focus is on relatively short term cash, which should appeal to anyone with half an eye on future interest rate rises.
Market leading instant access: offering 1.65% AER
The Freedom Savings Account is currently offering 1.65% AER variable gross, which is market leading for this type of account. This top rate is available to both new and existing customers and is free from notice periods, penalties, bonus periods, tiered rates and fees (although a £15 fee for CHAPS transfers applies). What you see is what you get, which perhaps also explains why it has been given a Moneyfacts rating of Outstanding*.
The account is available as a single or joint account and is free to use so you can make unlimited payments and withdrawals without charge. You have the option of interest being paid monthly or annually which will also compound provided you don’t move it to another account. There’s no limit or fees on the number of withdrawals you can make and it can be opened with a low minimum of just £100. You can apply online and RCI Bank state opening an account takes less than 15 minutes, whilst you also benefit from full UK customer support available 7 days a week
Click here to find out more about the RCI Bank instant access account »
RCI Bank short term fixed rate bonds: up to 2.35% AER
For those who are able to tie their money up for a fixed period and are also looking for a competitively priced fixed and regular rate of interest, RCI Bank also offers a duo of fixed rate savings accounts, over one and two years respectively. As you would expect, the rate of interest increases with the fixed term, the 1 year fixed term deposit offering 2.06% AER while the 2 year fixed term deposit is currently paying 2.35% AER. Both accounts have a Moneyfacts rating of Excellent*.
These fixed term deposits offer a guaranteed rate so you’ll know exactly how much you will earn by the end of the fixed term, whilst interest can be paid monthly or annually and can be compounded. Both deposits also give you the flexibility of unlimited top-ups for 30 days from your application however you cannot close your account once opened or make a withdrawal before the end of the term. You can apply online and the account has a low minimum of £1,000.
Click here for more info on the RCI Bank 1 Year Fixed Term Savings Account »
Click here for more info on the RCI Bank 2 Year Fixed Term Savings Account »
Deposit Guarantee Scheme
Deposits held with RCI Bank are not covered by the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme but instead fall within the scope of the French deposit protection scheme, known as the FGDR or Fonds de Garantie Dépôts et de Résolution. Eligible deposits with RCI Bank are protected, and all of the accounts above are covered by the FGDR, protecting the first €100,000 per customer within the RCI Banque group. As with the FSCS, the protection covers each customer rather than each account and for joint customers, each customer is protected up to €100,000 (so up to €200,000 between them). Since the maximum eligible is based in Euros, the UK sterling equivalent at any given time will depend on the exchange rate between the British Pound and the Euro.
Further information – FDGR
Created by law, the FGDR compensates depositors for an amount up to €100,000 per person, per institution, when a banking institution fails. This guarantee benefits all bank customers, private individuals, businesses of any size and associations. For more information and to check their status, visit www.garantiedesdepots.fr/en.
* Moneyfacts awards valid as at 01.10.2015
AER stands for the Annual Equivalent Rate and illustrates what the interest rate would be if interest was paid and compounded once each year.
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