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Cash interest explained |
You will receive interest on balances in your platform cash account at the prevailing rate.
Embark Investment Services Limited acts as the custodian for investments on the Willis Owen platform and is one of our strategic partners that provides our Willis Owen ISA, GIA, Junior ISA and SIPP.
Embark places cash with a number of banking partners for safekeeping and to provide the potential for you to earn interest on money in your platform cash account. By managing cash in this way, it aims to provide better protection and a higher overall level of interest than if all funds were placed with a single bank.
The rates of interest paid by banks will vary. Embark retains a portion of the interest earned to cover its costs in managing platform cash.
Current Interest Rate
The table below shows the current customer interest rate payable on cash balances along with the amount of interest retained by Embark. The customer interest rate shown is that after accounting for interest retained by Embark:
| Date From | Customer Interest Rate | Interest retained by Embark |
|---|---|---|
| 12th June 2024 | 2.6% | 1.75% - 2.00% |
Embark can change the rate of interest at any time and it reviews the position at least quarterly. Interest is calculated and accrued daily and is credited to your account on the first of each month. If you transfer out, accrued interest is applied at the point of transfer. We will inform you if and when the interest rate changes as soon as is practicable.
Interest retained
The table below shows the yearly equivalent rates of interest Embark expects to pay based on a range of possible yearly interest rates it may earn.
| Interest Embark expects to earn | Customer Interest Rate | Interest retained by Embark |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1% | 0 – 0.46% | 0 – 0.54% |
| 1-2% | 0.46% – 0.94% | 0.54% – 1.06% |
| 2-3% | 0.94% – 1.46% | 1.06% – 1.54% |
| 3-4% | 1.46% – 2.02% | 1.54% – 1.98% |
| 4-5% | 2.02% – 2.61% | 1.98% – 2.39% |
| 5%+ | 2.61%+ | 2.39%+ |
Historic Interest Rates
To see details of historic customer interest rates, along with the amount of interest retained by Embark, click here.
| Date From | Customer Interest Rate | Interest retained by Embark |
|---|---|---|
| 25th March 2024 | 2.46% | 1.97% |
| 6th October 2023 | 2.16% | 1.70% |
| 17th July 2023 | 2.00% | 2.05% |
| 19th April 2023 | 0.99% | - |
| 17th March 2023 | 0.49% | - |
| 2nd February 2023 | 0.43% | - |
| 22nd November 2022 | 0.29% | - |
| 1st November 2022 | 0.22% | - |
| 1st August 2022 | 0.10% | - |
| 24th April 2020 | 0.00% | - |
| 1st September 2018 | 0.55% | - |
| 1st May 2018 | 0.40% | - |
| 13th November 2017 | 0.15% | - |
| Guides and Tools
Take a look at our guides and tools to help plan and monitor your investments. Find out more |
We cover a range of topics that may help you manage your cash savings and investments. This includes topics like how current affairs can impact your investments or tips to boost returns on your cash savings.
‘Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how do your investments grow?’
04 Oct 24 One style that comes up from time to time is that of contrarian investing. Here we explain what it means and how some of your chosen investments might feature this particular style of going against the herd. Subscribe |
Back to basics – get into the granularity of bottom-up investing
04 Oct 24 This week, we look at its counterpart, referred to as ‘bottom-up’ investing. Subscribe |
Will you be ‘living your best life’ in the future?
27 Sep 24 In September, pensions have been front and centre for many across our industry – and perhaps for many of you. The pensions industry and governing bodies have rolled out several campaigns. Even the occasional celebrity has got involved (we’re looking at YOU, Gemma Collins!). These different factions have joined forces to remind us all of the importance of pensions: starting one; increasing your contributions; finding old ones to bring together; or just checking in to make sure yours is doing what it set out to do. We’ve pulled together some interesting stats, facts and reminders that may prove useful for you – wherever you’re at in preparing for your retirement. Subscribe |
Back to basics – are any of your funds run with a top-down strategy?
20 Sep 24 Over the coming weeks, we’re sharing a brief overview of some popular investment styles and how they might play out in some of the funds you hold. This week – top-down investing. Subscribe |
Is China’s superpower waning, or are opportunities abound?
13 Sep 24 In this week’s article, we’ve laid out the arguments for and against investing in the region and what investors might expect as we look to the end of the year. Subscribe |
Arguing both sides for investing in India
06 Sep 24 In this week’s article, we’ll look at what’s been driving some of that performance, some reasons whether or not this positive run may continue and some key considerations when investing in the vast region. Subscribe |
Sunshine spending and summer savings
30 Aug 24 Was this last Bank Holiday of the year a final weekender before the kids go back to school? Are you making the most of a staycation local to where you live? Maybe you’re starting to think about your next break in the hope for some winter sun. This week’s article looks at a few fun facts, tips and ideas for holiday budgeting, hopefully helping you stretch your money a little further. Subscribe |
What could the US election mean for your investments?
23 Aug 24 So, with the Democratic National Convention taking place this week, we took the prompt to take a look at the investment prospects for the US. An election won’t necessarily influence what happens with investment markets but they do present themes that land on our radar as a result. Subscribe |
Ambitious plans for pensions reform will reach far and wide
12 Aug 24 From the King’s Speech announcing a surprise pensions bill to Chancellor Rachel Reeves being inspired by Canada’s model for scheme consolidation, there’s a lot pension savers can look forward to – if they manage to pull it off. We’ll likely hear more specific plans in the Autumn Budget, but for now, we’ve detailed the major headlines and how the pensions-related services we offer alongside those announcements might help. Subscribe |
How do you feel about a widening pensions gap?
07 Aug 24 Hopefully, your pension savings plans are firmly on track but if you’re wondering whether you’re putting enough away, or unsure what your financial need may look like into retirement, the following article will likely be of interest. Subscribe |
UK dividends reach record highs in Q2
02 Aug 24 In either case, we expect you may find an overview of the state of the UK dividend market useful from time to time. We therefore hope you read this week’s piece with interest, whatever your current investment objectives. Subscribe |
Do ETFs feature in your investments?
26 Jul 24 Shaving off a few pence and pounds here and there can make a big difference to your overall financial picture. And the same applies to your investments. While most of our customers favour traditional funds, more retail money – that is invested by individual people for their personal gains rather than institutional money – that invested on behalf of governments and the corporate world, is flowing into ETFs. In this article we explore some key features of these cost-effective investment funds and point you to other helpful resources. Subscribe |
Market review Q2 2024
19 Jul 24 Whether new intel or familiar ground, we aim to make your investing life easier by bringing everything together in one place. These market review pieces cover the major markets, leading asset classes and some highlights over individual share performance, where they are listed in the UK. You can use this commentary to help inform the decisions you make around your own investments – whether ISA, GIA or SIPP accounts, as a mere sense-check or perhaps inform some fresh ideas for your portfolio. When doing so please remember that the value of investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you invested. Subscribe |
Over 150 years and still going strong… are you using investment trusts?
12 Jul 24 We recognise that most of our customers head straight for open-ended funds when they invest. But is that because you aren’t clear on the features of the other options? Have you considered investment trusts? Read on for a run-through of how these alternatives to mainstream funds work and where they might make useful additions to your overall investment mix. Subscribe |
What’s on your share investing checklist?
05 Jul 24 Maybe you like to do a bit of both. Whichever your approach, we’ve got you covered. Here we take things back to basics with a few reminders of things investors in shares ought to understand. Subscribe |
Which box will you mark next Thursday?
28 Jun 24 As the major parties have been pounding the pavements on their campaign trails the past few weeks, have they caught your attention? Still undecided or are you an unwavering party loyalist? We’re not political commentators, clearly but we thought it would be worth a quick round-up of the main contenders and what investors might expect regarding their financial affairs, depending on the outcome. Subscribe |
How are you accessing the markets?
21 Jun 24 Yet when you get past the basic principles, investing can be quite a personal experience. From the reasons why people start investing in the first place, to the factors influencing their choices, everyone will have a slightly different story to tell. Here we run through another perspective that relates to taking different approaches – this week looking at the various vehicles available on our platform. Subscribe |
Are your investments varied enough?
14 Jun 24 This spreading of risk can be achieved in various ways, and one of those comes down to asset allocation. All this means is blending multiple asset classes – shares, bonds, cash, etc – to work together so that your overall investment ‘portfolio’ is more well-balanced. In theory, this should protect your money from wild upward or downward swings in either direction at any one time. Whether this is something you’re already doing and you’d welcome a sense-check or perhaps you’d appreciate seeing the benefits of a wider asset choice, we hope this article is of interest. Subscribe |
Casting the net in fresh waters
07 Jun 24 We understand there is a strong case for investing in the UK currently. Our government keeps telling us about the growth opportunity; the markets tell us there are great companies to be found at discounted prices; and you – our customers – certainly seem to believe so, if your hefty allocations towards UK companies are anything to go by. But what about the alternatives? Consider the impact – positive or negative – on your investments by introducing more exposure to different regions. We’re not making any such recommendation, but just here to remind you there’s a bigger pond out there in which to fish – if it suits your circumstances to do so. Subscribe |
Three popular ways into investing
30 May 24 At Willis Owen, we’re all about choice. So if you’re someone who needs a little more support, likes to receive ideas from time to time, or prefer to go it alone, we’ve got a route for all preferences. Perhaps you’ve been investing for a while or maybe you’re just getting started – but whether this is new information or a welcome refresher, we hope you find something of interest. Subscribe |
What can bond investors expect in the coming months?
24 May 24 Levels of economic and geopolitical uncertainty are twin forces making the current environment particularly challenging for fixed income (bond) investing, because making predictions is so hard. Subscribe |
Morningstar’s expert view on the new sustainability rules
17 May 24 This week, we caught up with Lindsey Stewart, director of investment stewardship research at the research and ratings provider, to chat through some of the themes that came up during his regulatory panel discussion at the group’s annual conference a couple of weeks ago. The regulator’s new sustainability disclosure requirements (SDR) and labelling regime for products boasting claims around sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) credibility was a key area of focus. Subscribe |
What does the Bank’s latest move mean for you?
10 May 24 While we never suggest anyone make changes to their long-term investments based solely on short-term announcements, economic news items are important variables that may affect aspects of your own financial situation, so it’s good to be informed. Subscribe |
What’s your view of the proposed British ISA?
03 May 24 Here we run through some of the pros, cons and considerations of the government’s latest ISA innovation. Subscribe |
Know the full impact on tomorrow before dipping in today
24 Apr 24 This week’s article looks at some of the questions to ask yourself if you’re thinking about dipping into savings designed for the longer term. Subscribe |
Investing on the way up & the way down
17 Apr 24 Everyone’s goals are different but from a technical standpoint, investing in general falls into two broad strategies. One is about growing and the other about enabling withdrawals, and you can think about these two approaches in different ways. Subscribe |
Market Review Q1 2024
11 Apr 24 Some of this may be new news, some of it will have been well covered. By bringing everything together in one place, we hope will make your life easier. We’ve looked at the major markets, leading asset classes and – in the case of the UK – offer some highlights over individual share performance. Our aim is that you can use this commentary to help inform the decisions you make around your own investments (whether ISA, GIA or SIPP accounts), as a sense-check or to shape some ideas from a new perspective. Subscribe |
Three new (tax) year resolutions to think about
05 Apr 24 We’ve offered a few suggestions that tend to rear their heads at this time of year, which we hope you’ll find useful – today or over the coming 12 months. Subscribe |
AI: What is it? And how can I invest in it?
26 Mar 24 Subscribe |
Investing in today’s fragmented world
21 Mar 24 The trend looks set to continue in 2024, especially given it’s a ‘bumper’ year of political elections. However, when one door closes another one tends to open and despite uncertainty in some areas of the market, we see potential opportunities in others. In this article, we are going to look at the geopolitical risks the world faces in 2024 as well as the opportunities that could arise for your investments. Subscribe |
Spring into action
14 Mar 24 If you’re all over such tasks, we’ll leave you to it. If you don’t think you can be bothered, or aren’t sure where to start, we’ve got a few handy pointers for you. Subscribe |
2024 Spring Budget Round Up
06 Mar 24 Here we’ve summarised the key announcements from his statement, we hope you’ll read with interest. Subscribe |
What legacy will you leave?
28 Feb 24 A report out last year found that more than four in 10 people had not had a single conversation with their loved ones about what was to happen on their passing. Subscribe |
What next for UK banks? Two top fund managers tell us
23 Feb 24 This week we remember the landmark case of Royal Bank of Scotland’s government bailout and how far the banking sector has come since. For closer insight, we’ve turned to two managers at the helm of one of our Focus Funds – the list hand-picked by our research team of preferred funds from all corners of the market. Subscribe |
Smitten with a spender, saver or splurger? How to talk about love and money
14 Feb 24 Whether you’re sitting in wedded (or cohabiting) bliss, still searching for ‘the one’ or happily single, your relationship status seemingly has quite the bearing on your finances. Perhaps unfairly, perhaps logically, the world often appears predisposed to favouring those who come as a pair – certainly when it comes to spending. Things are rarely costed as simply as ‘two equals twice the cost of one’. This week we delve into some of the quirks and questions that often get asked (and hopefully answered) about money, love and relationships. Subscribe |
What will you take from this year’s ISA guide?
09 Feb 24 We like to think we’ve learnt a thing or two in that time so we hope you’ll find something of relevance, whether you’re a seasoned Willis Owen ISA customer, trying us out for the first time or haven’t quite made up your mind just yet. Whatever you’re after, we’re here to help and this year’s ISA guide should help you get on a front foot. Subscribe |
And so the pauses on interest rates continue…
02 Feb 24 Between inflation surprises, monetary policy debate and industry forecasts, at Willis Owen we’re all over the macroeconomic landscape. Subscribe |
10 top tips for getting your financial plans in place
26 Jan 24 Financial wellbeing is where a person is financially secure and satisfied with their current financial situation. Unfortunately in the UK, many households find themselves grappling with financial stress. Over 40% of UK adults have experienced financial worries and nearly a quarter of them said those worries had a significant impact on their mental health. From rising living costs to economic uncertainty, the root cause of people’s financial anxiety will vary. Financial education, confidence and, in turn, resilience – whatever those look like to you – are things we can all strive to improve. Subscribe |
Which supermarkets get your share of wallet – investment or actual?
19 Jan 24 So as we’re now firmly entrenched in January, we thought it would be worth a look at how our favoured retail names fared in their latest trading updates, which included the festive season. Subscribe |
How 2023 concluded: our second quarterly market review
12 Jan 24 Welcome to the next instalment of our quarterly market review; the chance for our expert investment research analysts to showcase the intel, insights and opinions they build throughout the year. Some of this may be new news, some of it will have been well covered. By bringing everything together in one place, we hope will make your life easier. We’ve looked at the major markets, leading asset classes and – in the case of the UK – offer some highlights over individual share performance. Our aim is that you can use this commentary to hep inform the decisions you make around your own investments (whether ISA, GIA or SIPP accounts), as a sense-check or to shape some ideas from a new perspective. Subscribe |
Five financial new year resolutions worth considering
05 Jan 24 It would feel remiss of us to kick off January without some suggestions for getting your finances in check, so read on for a few ideas. Subscribe |
How has UK spending fared towards the end of this year?
15 Dec 23 We’re still in a phase of relatively high inflation which, though expected to rise at a progressively slower pace, looks like it’s sticking around for some time yet. This means a lot of people are still feeling the pinch on their day-to-day outgoings. Earlier this month, the banking and finance sector’s trade body, UK Finance, published its review of household finances for the third quarter of 2023. A look at some of its key findings will give us a sense of how we’re all getting on with our money and where some of the pinch-points lie. Subscribe |
Want to know how ETFs can work for you? Enjoy your free guide
08 Dec 23 Many of us are keeping a keen eye on budgets right now, with everything costing us more than it did a year or two ago. If you’re looking to reduce charges in some of your investments, you may want to consider exchange-traded funds (ETFs) – a low-cost way of accessing whole areas of the market through a single security. With that in mind, we’ve just launched Willis Owen’s Guide to ETFs. Packed with information, from back-to-basics explainers to details around how, when and which ETFs to use, pros and cons and deconstructing some key terms. Subscribe |
Fancy adding some festive shine to your investments?
01 Dec 23 Do you hold anything shiny or shimmery across your investment accounts? Many of us have been hammered by higher costs of living this year and gold can be a useful hedge against high inflation, while being a good diversifier of returns. Here we run through some key considerations if you’re thinking of investing in gold, and ways to access the asset. Subscribe |
A deeper dive into the Autumn Statement
24 Nov 23 As we alluded to the other day, we know some items were leaked, some rumoured changes failed to materialise (saving something for the Spring, perhaps?) and some were skipped or glossed over in the speech itself, only to be fleshed out in the documents that followed. Subscribe |
What did you take from the Autumn Statement?
22 Nov 23 We hope you enjoy our quick summary. We’re sure more details will unfold in the coming days… Subscribe |
Do you share the government’s confidence in UK growth?
17 Nov 23 Subscribe |
What’s your ‘one thing’ this Talk Money Week?
10 Nov 23 Which is sad, because – as we also know – a problem shared is a problem halved, and with more expensive daily outgoings to contend with and a heightened awareness of the importance of financial wellbeing, we ought to put our self-consciousness to one side and start talking to each other. Noting that even the smallest steps are worth taking, this week’s theme for Talk Money Week is ‘Do One Thing’. What will yours be? Subscribe |
Your needs are always front and centre, with or without FCA say-so
03 Nov 23 We hope to be more considered with our communications; sometimes a light-touch look at some common investment themes or trends, occasionally more detailed pieces that aim to break the bigger picture and sometimes articles such as this one – keeping you abreast of industry goings-on. Subscribe |
As the Bank of England pauses for breath, what happens next?
27 Oct 23 In this article, we go back to 1986 and look at how stock and bond markets have reacted historically after the Bank of England has raised interest rates by at least 1%. Subscribe |
Remembering Black Monday with Liontrust’s multi-asset head
20 Oct 23 Some of you may well remember it. Perhaps some of you were invested at the time, and to those, we apologise for picking at long-healed wounds. Whether it was a mere news headline; something affecting other people, or you were face-down amid the market collapse, we thought it was worth a trip down memory lane, courtesy of the revered head of multi-asset team at Liontrust, John Husselbee. John was just two years into his career in the City when Black Monday struck, and shares his recollections of the time, alongside a few words of wisdom and lessons learnt. Subscribe |
Our new quarterly market review series has landed
13 Oct 23 We wanted to take a snapshot of that knowledge; distil it into a piece of useful commentary to share with you every three months, giving an overview of what’s been happening across the world’s major markets. The idea is that some of these observations will perhaps help you sense-check some of your existing investments, offer some fresh insight or inspire you to think about some new ideas to introduce to your investment and pension accounts. Subscribe |
Simply enter your details here for regular insights, hints and tips on the world of investing and for information about our products and services.
We don’t provide advice as to whether an investment is suitable for you. Before investing you should make sure you understand the risks involved and, if you’re unsure, seek expert financial advice.
Past performance of an investment is not a guide to future performance, the value of investments or income from them may go down as well as up and you may get back less than you originally invested. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may change.
Call 0800 597 2525
Call 0800 597 2525
Willis Owen Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (firm reference 121261) and is registered in England (No.3283706) at Ground Floor, 507 (Unit 2), Centennial Business Park, Elstree, WD6 3FG. The information and content of this site is intended for UK consumers. The Willis Owen Smart Savings service is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Smart Savings is provided (on behalf of Willis Owen Limited) by Raisin Platforms Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No.813894).