Nationwide - couple of questions

stormCat99

Hi,

Does anyone know what type of card you get with a Nationwide current account, is it a Visa debit or something else?

Also, do they ever offer an account opening incentive (cashback, freebies etc), as if so I may as well wait a while. If they never do this I will go ahead and get one opened now.

Many thanks.

KTF

If you get a debit card then its a visa debit.

There are no 'freebies' that I know of for opening one.

Jnelhams

I have a question about the Nationwide and other 'Mutuals'....

If a Mutual is owned by it's members, what happens to all those bloomin' great surpluses they seem to make? After all the rate of interest on Savings and Mortgages is often no better than a normal stock market listed bank.

It seems to me that the Nationwide are just a bunch of crooks creaming it off at the Executive level in nice fat salaries, while the so called members get the crumbs/nothing at all! :mad:

pin

Jnelhams wrote:

I have a question about the Nationwide and other 'Mutuals'....

If a Mutual is owned by it's members, what happens to all those bloomin' great surpluses they seem to make? After all the rate of interest on Savings and Mortgages is often no better than a normal stock market listed bank.

It seems to me that the Nationwide are just a bunch of crooks creaming it off at the Executive level in nice fat salaries, while the so called members get the crumbs/nothing at all! :mad:

They plough profits back into the business and not in the form of dividends.

Also remember Nationwide is by far the best for foreign spending, I've saved well over £10k in about 5 years using Nationwide for my foreign spending. NW absorb the costs on transactions like this.

Re the OP question: if you get a debit card its visa and if you get a cash card its a mastercard backed one.

Kilty_2

Are the MasterCard exchange rates the same as Visa's ?

Can't seem to find them online but I can find the Visa rates. (My Nationwide card is the Cirrus ATM one )

techno_geek

No, I don't think Visa and Mastercard's exchange rates are exactly the same but they are both excellent rates compared to a bureau de change!


By the way, does anyone know if Nationwide have started issuing FlexAccount Visa Debit cards with the new Visa logo on??

Kilty_2

Don't think so, opened an account last week and the images showing you what cards can be provided still showed the old Visa logo.

Wonder if it's worth filling out the suggestions form I was given, suggesting Nationwide provide debit cards without guarantee function for those under 18 just like Lloyds TSB and Clydesdale/Yorkshire Bank do...

Jnelhams

pin wrote:

They plough profits back into the business and not in the form of dividends.

Also remember Nationwide is by far the best for foreign spending, I've saved well over £10k in about 5 years using Nationwide for my foreign spending. NW absorb the costs on transactions like this.

Re the OP question: if you get a debit card its visa and if you get a cash card its a mastercard backed one.

Oh come on, Nationwide make millions, they plough it back in to directors salaries, apart from the Credit Card they offer nothing else. Had you been a share holder in one of the major banks over that period of time you would have had a capital gain and dividends. What you get with most of these so called Mutuals is a lousy rate of interest, and excuses. Can you tell me what Nationwide have really done with the millions they have made in Surpluses over that time, other than pay your Mastercard fee?

pin

Jnelhams wrote:

Oh come on, Nationwide make millions, they plough it back in to directors salaries, apart from the Credit Card they offer nothing else. Had you been a share holder in one of the major banks over that period of time you would have had a capital gain and dividends. What you get with most of these so called Mutuals is a lousy rate of interest, and excuses. Can you tell me what Nationwide have really done with the millions they have made in Surpluses over that time, other than pay your Mastercard fee?

For starters, no-one is forcing you to bank with Nationwide, so you don't have to. I do because I get a good deal on my foreign travels, they have a decent e-savings account and their Flexaccount is fine for me.

As for directors salaries, now they only probably add up to about a few million in total, yet NW probably makes £100s of millions, the directors salaries are only a TINY fraction of their profits. Also remember profits are reported AFTER salaries, as salaries are a cost to a business.

Jnelhams

pin wrote:

For starters, no-one is forcing you to bank with Nationwide, so you don't have to. I do because I get a good deal on my foreign travels, they have a decent e-savings account and their Flexaccount is fine for me.

As for directors salaries, now they only probably add up to about a few million in total, yet NW probably makes £100s of millions, the directors salaries are only a TINY fraction of their profits. Also remember profits are reported AFTER salaries, as salaries are a cost to a business.

I don't use them, but the point you make is exactly what I am saying they make MILLIONS, and what do they do with that cash, nought for the most part. If they were a PLC it would have at least gone back in part as dividends. The rates you get are no better that deals from people like Icici and Ing.

Cypher

techno_geek wrote:

By the way, does anyone know if Nationwide have started issuing FlexAccount Visa Debit cards with the new Visa logo on??

I've just recieved my cards today and it still has the old style visa logo.