Thousands of Nationwide customers have been given free bonuses
Tens of thousands of Nationwide members have seen free cash land in their accounts, with experts describing the building society as ‘heads and shoulders above the rest’.
Current account switches have exceeded one million for the third consecutive year following a spike in customers seeking fresh deals towards the close of 2025. Nationwide Building Society attracted 41,450 customers between July and September, with banking customers enticed by its £175 switching incentive and annual payments through its profit-sharing scheme. The final quarter of 2025 proved the busiest period, recording 350,114 current account switches, according to figures from the Current Account Switch Service (Cass).
The service enables customers to transfer their current account automatically by having payments transferred to a new provider. Some individuals move their funds outside of Cass, meaning the statistics provided exclude those transfers.
There were 1,054,521 switches in total throughout 2025, marking the third successive year that switches have surpassed one million. However this actually represents a decline compared to the volumes recorded in 2023 and 2024, when elevated interest rates were pushing up savings rates in the marketplace.
Interest rates have been falling since August 2024. Nationwide secured the largest number of customers switching to its current accounts between July and September, with Cass’s figures reported three months behind.
It was followed by Monzo and NatWest, who gained 9,934 and 8,731 respectively. At the opposite end of the spectrum, customers were departing from banks including Santander, which lost nearly 20,000 current accounts during this timeframe.
Also lagging behind were Halifax, which saw 17,341 customers switch away, and JP Morgan’s Chase, which lost 7,623 accounts. John Dentry, product manager at Pay.UK, which operates Cass, said: “That level of activity is a clear sign of a healthy, competitive banking market, where people feel empowered to shop around and move to an account that better meets their needs.
“At a time when every pound matters, we want consumers to feel confident they can move their money to an account that better suits their needs – quickly, easily, and with the reassurance of a free, guaranteed switch.”
Andrew Hagger, personal finance expert at website Moneycomms, described Nationwide as “head and shoulders above every other provider” in terms of attracting customers from competitors. Nationwide has been particularly strong during the last two years, winning a massive 404,207 customers from competitor banks,” he stated.
Alastair Douglas, chief executive of TotallyMoney, observed that current account switching “heated up” towards the end of 2025, noting: “And we’re unlikely to see things slow down any time soon, as a magnificent seven banks are currently offering switch incentives of at least £175, including Co-op, First Direct, HSBC Premier, Lloyds, Nationwide, Santander and TSB.
“You might also find a new bank can provide you with better service, an interest-free overdraft or high street branches. Loyalty doesn’t pay, but more often than not, moving your money can.”
