Last June, the major supermarket bank announced plans to transfer its personal loans, credit cards, and savings accounts to the high street building society
A major update has been issued to the 1.8million Sainsbury’s Bank customers which are soon to be taken on by Natwest.
Last June, the major supermarket bank announced plans to transfer its personal loans, credit cards, and savings accounts to the high street building society. Sainsbury’s Bank has now confirmed that this transfer is expected to take effect on May 1 – subject to High Court approval.
The court hearing is set to take place on April 15. If approved, all personal loans, credit cards, and savings accounts held with Sainsbury’s Bank will be transferred to NatWest by the end of this year. Sainsbury’s Bank customers have been reassured that they will see no immediate changes to how they use or access their accounts until the transfers are completed.
This means all direct debits and standing orders, as well as spending and making payments and transferring money to and from savings accounts, will remain unchanged, and will still be able to collect Nectar points with your credit card. You can also still contact Sainsbury’s Bank in the same way. Once the deal has been completed and finalised, customers will be informed of any changes they may see and be given 60 days’ notice until they are implemented.
The sale did not include Sainsbury’s Bank’s commission-income businesses, such as insurance, cash points, and travel money. Argos Financial Services is also not included in the deal, so these will remain the same going forward.
The supermarket chain announced that it would wind down its banking division in January last year, as it wanted to focus on its retail business. Natwest agreed to purchase the bank in June 2024. The deal is set to see Natwest to take on £1.4billion of unsecured personal loans, £1.1billion of credit card balances and about £2.6billion of customer deposits.
Natwest said it was working to make sure – where possible – customers’ new accounts would be the same as their existing ones. This includes the overall amount of interest charged for credit cards, the amount of interest earned for savings and any promotional offers. If you do not want your account transferred to NatWest, you can close it, pay back any outstanding balance, or withdraw funds.
