The latest news to help you get the most from your bank account.
Here’s my monthly update sharing changes for leading UK current accounts, as well as some of the relevant articles you might have missed on the site.
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February current account offers
New bank switching deals
A handful of new switch deals have dropped since my last update. You can get more details on each one via the links to our detailed analysis.
First up is the return of the £400 Barclays Premier Current Account offer. Its only for high earners new to the bank. Sadly this time around there’s no option for the normal Current Account. This one is set to end on 30 April.
Elsewhere, Santander £200 switch offer has got better, with an extra £25 available if you go via the link in our tables. The account also offers 1% cashback on bills and 6% interest on savings as extras.
Natwest is also back, though the upfront cash is less than last time. You’ll get £150 for switching, and also access to a bonus rate on the digital regular saver letting you earn 7% for a year.
You can get £100 for switching to Co-op, and another £25 a month for three months, totalling £175. It’s a more fiddly one though as you’ll need to use your debit card 10 times each month to trigger the payments.
Then for those living in Northern Ireland you can get £200 for switching to Danske Bank. New customers need to open a Reward, Choice or Freedom current account. Then to get the cash, within 60 days they need to switch, pay in £1,000, register for online banking and set up two direct debits (they don’t have to be moved from your old bank in this instance). Previous switchers won’t get the money again.
Ending bank switching deals
It’s your last chance to get up to £750 from HSBC. As shared last month, it’s just for Premier customers who need to earn more than £100,000 a year and have that salary paid into the account OR have at least £100,000 saved or invested with HSBC. If you qualify then you can get £250 for opening a new account and switching. If you do both, and keep the cash saved for three months, then there’s another £500 added on. This offer ends 23 February 2026, but you’ve until 30 April 2026 to complete the switch.
Sadly, the Lloyds and TSB offers have now finished.
Ongoing bank switching deals
And don’t forget these long standing ones which are still available.
First Direct’s switching offer is also still available for £175. Don’t forget you can access a 7% regular saver with this bank. There’s also £45 available if you go via TopCashback.
Nationwide’s switch deal also has the same amount on offer, and you can get it for both a personal and a joint account. There’s a good chance you’ll pick up a further £100 Fairer Share bonus next spring.
Featured switching deal
Our top pick
Customer rating
3.8/5
- Switch bonus£200
- Offer endsUnknown
- Extra bonus£25 Amazon Gift Card
- FSCS Protected? Yes
- Switch bonus requirements Switch using the Current Account Switch Service and close your old account within 60 days of starting the switch
- Deposit requirements Deposit £1,500 in the first 60 days from opening the account
- Direct debits transferred over Set up two Direct Debits before or after the switch from a selected list of household bills
- Existing customers? Can't have held any Santander current account on 1 January 2025
- Restrictions Can't have received a switching bonus from Santander already, offer limited to once per person
- Eligible accounts Open a new or hold an existing Everyday, Edge, Edge Up or Edge Explorer current account
- £25 Amazon Gift Card requirements To qualify for the gift card, you need to complete a full switch using CASS, and make five debit card transactions within 30 days of opening the account
iFast £100 salary ‘switch’ offer
A new deal from digital bank iFast could net you £100 – and you don’t need to fully switch to get it. Instead you’ll need to ask your employer to move your salary payments to an iFast current account for at least three months in a row. You need to ensure your salary is paid by Bacs
The first payment must be before the end of April 2026, and the third by 30 June 2026, which means it doesn’t need to be three consecutive months paid this way. You’ll get the cash by the end of the following month once the third payment is received.
If you don’t have an iFast account you can open one here.
First Direct Perks “spin to win”
From 17 February to 3 March 2026, or until all prizes are claimed, you can spin to win in your First Direct Perks account. Prizes are as follows:
- 100 x Free Cineworld adult cinema tickets
- 100 x Free Cineworld regular popcorn
- 100 x £10 Uber Eats Vouchers
- 400 x Free Movie Download/Rental with Rakuten TV
- 200 x £3 Greggs eGift Card
- 200 x Sainsbury’s Treat (worth £2)
- 1 x £100 Jet2holidays Voucher
- 10,000 x Cineworld Combo deal – Regular Drink and Popcorn for £8
However, like me, you’re more likely to win nothing as 100,000 spins will result in “no prize”.
Lloyds £50 hotel discount
If you have a Lloyds, Halifax, Bank of Scotland or MBNA debit or credit card, then you can get £50 off a hotel booking. You need to stay for three nights or more, book via the Lloyds Travel Booking feature on your app and of course, pay with your card. The offer ends 1 June 2026 and this needs to be your first hotel booking via the app. Don’t forget to activate the offer first.
Lloyds £50 refer a friend ends soon
Sticking with Lloyds, the £50 refer a friend offer is set to end on 2 March 2026. You can get up to five friends to join and you’ll each get £50. You’ll find the details in the Everyday Offers section of your online account or app.
February’s current account news
Chase launches packaged add on
If you buy annual travel insurance, breakdown cover and mobile phone protection already, then a packaged account can be a money saver.
The latest bank to offer this is Chase, with the Protect add on to your current account. It’ll cost you £12.50 a month, making it one of the cheapest options out there. Zoe has looked into more detail how it compares to other options from the likes of Santander and Virgin Money.
Don’t forget that new Chase customers can also get a one year boost on easy access savings.
Get the best of our money saving content every week, straight to your inbox
Plus, new Quidco customers get a high paying £18 welcome offer
Yet more bank branch closures announced
As often happens at the start of the year, a raft of banks have announced loads of closures on the high street. Click the links to see if your local has been affected.
- 44 Santander branches to close in 2026 and 2027
- 32 Natwest branches to close in 2026
- 95 more Halifax, Lloyds & Bank of Scotland branch closures in 2026 and 2027
Extra Club Lloyds account update
Previously I’ve shared how it’s possible to get an extra Club Lloyds account, and therefore an extra ‘Lifestyle Benefit’ such as six cinema tickets or Disney+ with Ads, by opening up a joint account.
The rules haven’t changed, but the process to get the second account have, as I discovered recently when trying to take advantage of the recent £250 switch offer.
This offer required a new Club Lloyds account, so I downgraded by existing one to a standard account, which should have let me then apply for a new one. However it didn’t, and the reason for this was I also had a joint Club Lloyds active. Once I downgraded that, I was able to then apply for the new personal Club Lloyds account.
So, though you can still have both a personal and joint Club Lloyds, you can now only open one up in the app or online. If you want a second, you need to go into a branch or call on the phone.
I went with the latter option, and it took more than 35 minutes, mainly because every term and condition was read to me!
If you’re keen to get an extra account for the freebies, here’s our Club Lloyds review.
Just a nudge for those of you with a Nationwide current account. Though we can’t guarantee the rules for the annual Fairer Share payment will be the same as they were in the last few years, it makes sense to at least follow the required actions again this year. And you’ve only got until the end of this month to start. Here’s more in our guide to the £100 Nationwide Fairer Share bonus.
Our top current accounts for February 2026
I always think it’s worth having more than one current account (find out why here) and here’s my run-down of the top accounts to have this month.
