Savings rates jump as ISA season returns with highest monthly uplift in a decade

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Savers scouring the market for a cash ISA will find the biggest month-on-month jump in the rates on offer in a decade, according to analysis by Moneyfacts.co.uk.

The financial information website said the average easy access ISA rate in April is 0.38% - up from 0.30% in March, making the 0.08 percentage point increase the biggest monthly rise for this type of account since April 2012.

In real terms, this means that someone saving £5,000 into an easy access cash ISA could typically make £15 in interest over a year if they do not dip into the pot based on March's average annual rate, increasing to £19 based on April's average rate.

Moneyfacts said that the average easy access cash ISA rate is the best it has been since June 2020, when it was 0.45%.The average one-year fixed ISA meanwhile recorded the biggest month-on-month rate increase since August 2011, rising to 0.87% - its highest point since May 2020 when it stood at 0.91%.Longer-term fixed ISA rates, with terms of more than 550 days, have also jumped up.The average long-term fixed Isa rate is now 1.30%, up from 1.12% in March.It marked the biggest month-on-month rise since July 2008 and the highest average rate for this type of account since February 2020, when it was 1.34%.The analysis was based on someone having a £5,000 savings deposit.The period around March and April is often known as "ISA season" as providers compete to attract customers with their best rates.Savers receive a fresh ISA allowance each tax year, which runs from April 6 to April 5, but in recent years competition has been lacklustre in the low-interest rate environment.Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfacts, said: "After a lengthy absence, ISA season is back around the end of a tax year,