Nationwide completes takeover of Virgin Money – here's what it means for savers and borrowers

Virgin Money saver? Your money's now with the UK's biggest building society

If you're a Virgin Money saver, there are three key need-to-knows:

1. Your deposits are now protected by Nationwide. So for your money to be at risk, Nationwide would have to fail – and it's the UK's biggest building society and one of the UK's largest financial institutions.

2. Your interest rate will stay the same for now – but check if you can get a better deal. Virgin Money says there are no changes to its products as a result of the move, but keep an eye on your rate and switch if you can get more elsewhere. See our Top savings and Top cash ISAs guides for our current best buys, including up to 4.7% easy access.

3. If you've savings with both Virgin Money AND Nationwide, they now share the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protection. So, if you've over £120,000 saved with both, you may want to move your money elsewhere – as you now only get a combined £120,000 limit across the two. See How to save in 100% safety. You can also use our tool to Check which banks are linked.
   
   If your combined savings with Nationwide and Virgin Money will be above the £120,000 limit, Virgin Money says it will contact you to explain your options – and if you have a notice or fixed-rate savings account or cash ISA, you’ll be able to withdraw or transfer your funds fee- or notice-free until 1 June 2026.

Got other Virgin Money products? You can keep using them as normal

Current accounts, mortgages (including from Clydesdale Bank, which was owned by Virgin Money), credit cards and personal loans have all now been transferred to Nationwide – but there are NO immediate changes as a result of the move:

• Sort codes and account numbers will stay the same.

• There are no changes to "any account features", including interest rates.

• Your debit and credit cards will still work, with no change to your PIN(s).

• Scheduled payments, such as Direct Debits and standing orders, will continue as before.

• You should keep using Virgin Money's online and mobile banking services as normal.

• You should still contact Virgin Money's customer services via the usual channels.

Over time, Virgin says it "may make some changes" to its processes and IT systems – for example, it may "ask you to download a new mobile app sometime in the future". But it says it will give you "plenty of notice" if this happens.

Of course, this could be a good opportunity to check you're getting the best deal. Check our guides on the best bank accounts – including up to £500 to switch, cutting existing loan costs and shifting credit card debt to 0%. Plus, use our Mortgage best buys tool to compare rates. Remember to check for any exit fees or penalties before switching.

Insurance products aren't part of the transfer to Nationwide, so they'll also continue as before. We're checking if the same applies to insurance products taken out as part of a Virgin Money package account and we'll update this story when we know more.

Virgin Money branches will remain open – you CAN'T use Nationwide's

Nationwide has promised to retain a branch wherever it already has one until at least the start of 2030 – and this 'Branch Promise' now applies to Virgin Money's 91 existing branches as well.

However, Nationwide and Virgin Money branches will continue to operate completely separately "for some time" – this means Virgin Money customers can't yet use Nationwide branches (or vice versa).

Could you get Nationwide's £100 'Fairer Share' bonus in future?

For the past three years, Nationwide has given some of its customers – which it calls members – a £100 'Fairer Share' bonus.

Virgin Money customers with a personal current account, personal savings account, or mortgage became Nationwide members automatically on Thursday 2 April. We've asked Nationwide if this means you could be eligible for its £100 payment in future – we'll update this story when we know more.