Frequently Asked Questions

  • General information about our business savings accounts

    A business savings account is designed specifically for businesses to save money whilst earning interest.  

    There’s a range of accounts to suit business needs, including easy access (sometimes known as instant access), notice and fixed term accounts. Each offers a different level of flexibility, interest rate and access.  

    No – we don’t apply fees or charges on our standard business savings accounts.  

    Some more specialist accounts, such as a limited access account, may incur charges which will be detailed in the account’s Summary Box. 

    Eligible deposits for businesses are protected by the FSCS.  

    If you’re unsure if your organisation is protected, you can read more information on our FSCS page. 

    Our business savings accounts have a minimum balance of between £5,000 and £20,000 – the specific amount will be made clear when you open the account and in the Summary Box.  

    You may invest up to £750,000 in a single account and up to £1,000,000 in total with us. Some accounts may allow higher balances, and this will be detailed in the Summary Box. 

    Interest earned on a business savings account is taxable. You’ll need to report it on your business’s tax returns. We’ll upload a statement with the interest earned for the previous tax year to our online portal, which you can include in your tax filing. Get in touch if you need this another way. 

    An issue number indicates the version of the specific account you’ve chosen to open with us. We continuously update our offering in line with the market, so each new version receives its own issue number to track the rate and terms clearly 

  • Opening a business savings account

    Our business savings accounts are designed for UK-based organisations with under 250 employees: 

    • Sole traders – trading in the UK 
    • Limited companies/PLCs/LLPs – incorporated in the UK 
    • Partnerships 
    • Charities – registered in the UK 
    • Clubs and associations 
    • Small local authorities/PCCs/councils 
    • Schools 
    • Religious organisations 
    • Small financial institutions 
    • Credit unions. 

     We also have a specialist deposits service for credit unions (and community banks), pension administrators (SIPP & SSAS) and larger firms over 250 employees. 

     

    It’s quick and easy and can be completed entirely online in around 10 minutes. 

    We aim to open your account straight away, but if we can’t, well usually let you know what else we need within two business days of receiving your application. Well write to you confirming your new account details and any more information we need. 

    If you already hold an online account, simply login and select ‘apply online’. Select the account you need and then apply.

    If you’ve always managed your account with us in a different way, for example by phone, you can keep doing this – please call us during business hours. 

    As a responsible bank we need to be confident in knowing who our customers are. We check your address and identity of owners and signatories using various electronic databases, as well as the registration and status of your firm. 

    If we’re unable to verify you in this way, we’ll get in touch and may ask you for some documents to help us complete our checks.  

    Read what verification documents we may ask for.  

    You can send clear photos or photocopies of these to us by email to [email protected]. Please don’t send us originals. You’ll need to send these within 14 days of applying for your account, otherwise we’ll cancel the application. 

    When you apply, we’ll ask you to give us a ‘nominated account’ – a current account your organisation has with a UK bank – which you’ll use for all payments to and from your HTB account. 

    We’ll check the nominated account details you give us and occasionally we may need you to provide evidence that you are the account holder. 

    All payments you make into your savings account must be made from your nominated account. 

    If we receive an electronic payment from a different account, we’ll return it to that account. If we receive a cheque from a different account, we’ll return it to you uncashed. 

    We’ll make all withdrawals by electronic payment into your nominated account. 

    Yes – you can cancel any account with us within the first 14 days after the opening date on your account opening confirmation letter. You can also cancel your account by sending us a secure message when logged in or call us on 020 7862 6220 during business hours. 

    If you’ve already paid money into your account, we’ll return this to you, along with any interest you’ve earned, when you tell us you would like to cancel it. 

    Some accounts have restrictions after 14 days. For example, you’ll need to give the required notice period for Notice accounts, and Fixed rate accounts cannot be accessed until the end of the term. Refer to the account’s Summary Box for the details of your account. 

    It’s important that you understand what these terms are before opening the account, which you’ll be able to view during the application process. 

    Interest is calculated daily once the account’s minimum balance is reached – check the account’s Summary Box for the minimum balance. It’s paid on the anniversary of the date we received your first deposit, and then annually after this – or at the end of the term if that’s sooner. 

    If the anniversary falls on a weekend or a bank holiday your interest will be credited on the next working day. 

    If you send us money electronically, such as by Faster Payments, BACS or CHAPS, you’ll start to earn interest on the day we receive it provided this is before 1pm. If we receive it after 1pm you’ll start to earn interest from the next working day. 

    If you send us money by cheque, you’ll start to earn interest on the second working day after we receive it. 

    Yes, eligible deposits with HTB are protected by the UK’s deposit protection scheme, the FSCS. Find out if your organisation is eligible here 

    Your eligible protection limit applies across all accounts you have with us, including those opened by third parties who help manage your money for you, such as savings marketplaces, cash platforms or wealth management services (referred to as deposit aggregators).   

    If a deposits aggregator deposited your money with us, any eligible deposits for your organisation are added to those held by us directly or through other aggregators and your FSCS protection with us will apply to this total, not individually to each entity.  In the event we’re unable to service your account, the FSCS will check and pay these claims as soon as possible, and always within three months. 

    For any further information please visit the FAQs section at the top of the FSCS page.  

    Yes once you’ve opened your account, you can manage it online through our online portal. If you need to contact us, the easiest way is by sending us a secure message when logged in.

    To open an account you must be prepared to invest at least £5,000. You may invest up to £750,000 in a single account and up to £1,000,000 in total with us.

  • Managing your business savings account

    You can manage your account and message us about it when logged into our online portal, or call us on 020 7862 6220 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, excluding bank holidays). 

    If you’ve always managed your account with us in a different way for a specific reason, for example by post, you can keep doing this. 

    Simply log in to our online portal. 

    We’ll also upload an annual statement on the anniversary of account opening. 

    Simply log in to our online portal. 

    Your current interest rate, and any changes during the year, will also be shown on your annual statement, which we’ll upload to your online account. 

    We’ll get in touch a few weeks before your fixed term comes to an end (the ‘account maturity’) to let you know your options and ask for your instructions.

    Businesses can give us – and amend – your maturity instructions up to 2 working days before your account matures, simply get in touch. If your business is registered for our online portal, you can do this easily when logged in to your account.

    And, if we don’t hear from you, we’ll move your balance into our maturity easy access account to keep it protected while you decide what to do.

    Please make the cheque payable to the business name.

    You can have up to four people on your mandate. The signing options are any one signatory, any two signatories or any four signatories.

  • Easy access business savings accounts

    Easy access business savings accounts offer a good return with the flexibility to top-up and withdraw funds at any time with ease.  

    These accounts are ideal if you need immediate access to manage day-to-day expenses and unexpected costs.  

    It’s important to check the Summary Box for your account to understand any specific restrictions your account may have. 

    The interest rate on our business easy access accounts is variable.  

    There are two types of variable rates, ‘managed’ and ‘tracker’. Check your account Summary Box to understand which one it has. 

    Managed rates can be changed by us at any time, subject to us giving you notice. 

    Tracker rates move up and down in line with the BoE base rate. If the base rate changes, the new interest rate on your account will apply without notice, no more than 5 business days following a change in the base rate. 

    Refer to the account’s Summary Box and Terms and Conditions for more information. 

    Our easy access business savings account doesn’t charge fees for withdrawals or account maintenance.  

    Consider factors such as interest rates, withdrawal options, low or no fees, minimum deposit requirements, online banking options, and even customer reviews.

    Yes, you can easily open an easy access business savings account online through our website. The process is quick and straightforward.

  • Business savings tracker accounts

    It can. Tracker interest rates are variable and can be increased or decreased depending on the Bank of England (BoE) base rate. 

    We can also adjust the margin to BoE base rate at any time at our sole discretion as outlined in the account Summary Box. 

    The margin is the percentage below the Bank of England base rate we detail on your Summary Box when you opened your account. This will move in line with the Bank of England Base rate minus the margin. This will move within 5 business days of a base rate change. 

    We can change the margin by giving you 14 days’ notice and you can close an easy access account at any time. 

    Yes, you can make multiple payments into your account. You do not earn interest until the minimum balance is reached, after which the whole balance will earn interest. 

    For example, if the minimum balance is £20,000, you could make payments of £10,000 and £7,000 – we’ll accept the payments onto your account and they would not be earning interest yet. Make an additional payment of at least £3,000 and you’ll start earning interest on the whole balance. 

  • ISA business savings accounts

    ISA stands for Individual Savings Account. The main difference between an ISA and any other savings account is that it offers tax-free interest payments, so you could get more for your money. There is a limit to how much money you can put into an ISA in each tax year, which is called the ‘ISA allowance’.

    HTB will only offer a Cash ISA.

  • Business savings account withdrawals

    You can make a withdrawal from your easy access account when logged in online.   

    Withdrawals requested before 1pm on a working day will be paid the same day. For anything requested after 1pm this will be paid the next working day. 

    You can make unlimited withdrawals on a notice account, subject to your notice period. You can schedule these or send us a secure message when logged in. 

    As it’s a fixed term, you can only withdraw your money at the end of the term (known as the accounts’ ‘maturity’ date). 

    We’ll get in touch before maturity and remind you of the date that your fixed term ends, detailing your options and asking for your maturity instructions. You can ask us to reinvest some, or all of it, into new accounts or return it to your nominated account.  

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