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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 |
|---|---|---|
| 25th March 2024 | 2.46% | 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.
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Take control of your retirement plans today Check out our SIPP |
Provided you’re a UK resident and under the age of 75, if you put money into a personal pension or SIPP you’ll be able to get a top-up from the government. It’s called ‘tax relief’ and is paid directly into your pension plan. Tax relief is given in this way at the basic rate of income tax, which is currently 20%.
To get £100 into your pension, you pay £80 and the government top-up of £20 is paid straight into your plan. Tax relief is designed to give you back the tax you would have paid on the income you’ve earned, and which you’ve decided to put back into a pension. Even someone who doesn’t have any earnings can still claim tax relief on contributions of up to £2,880 per year, making a total annual contribution of £3,600. If you pay tax at a higher rate than 20%, the benefits don’t stop there. In this case, you’ll normally be entitled to claim a reduction in your tax bill for the year. You do this through your tax return (if you complete one) or by contacting your tax office.
Below are examples of how tax relief reduces the ‘real’ cost to you of making a pension contribution, per £100 contribution for a basic, higher and additional rate taxpayer.
Calculate the tax relief you could receive on your annual personal pension contributions.
