ATOM Bank

Not sure why they are not in the list, but I have invested in a large number of their fixed rate bonds since they first opened and have always found them to be excellent.

Unless I'm missing something here, the 2.05% one-year fixed term account isn't listed within the ISA article because it isn't an ISA, Atom don't do ISAs!

It's listed within https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/savings-accounts-best-interest/#fixedsavings which is where it should be....

All ISAs must offer access to funds, even if there are early withdrawal penalties imposed.

mike_bacon wrote: »

because my wife paid no tax on her gross interest I had automatically asumed it was an ISA.

All savings interest is now paid gross of tax and tax is typically only payable (if applicable) once the interest earned over the full tax year can be compared with the personal savings allowance, so the fact that no tax is deducted at source doesn't signify an ISA! It remains important for the account holder to be able to differentiate between ISAs and taxable products when working out whether or not they're subject to tax, or indeed whether or not they should be declared to HMRC in the first place.

mike_bacon wrote: »

So that means I can still put £20k in an ISA this FY as I haven't used any of the allowance?

If you paid into an Atom account mistakenly thinking it was an ISA and haven't paid into any actual ISAs then yes, you still have your full annual allowance available for use.

Cliddy wrote: »

I don't quite know why they say they are the first app based bank. I've been using nationwide and first direct for years.

They say "We’re the UK’s first bank built exclusively for your smartphone or tablet", whereas interactions with Nationwide and First Direct have been via branches (HSBC for FD) and phone and web browser for many years before any apps were created for them, so for those longstanding names apps are a belated additional channel, whereas for Atom the app is the only way of dealing with them.