Nationwide is gearing up to dish out a hefty bonus of at least £350 million to its legion of customers, as part of its “Fairer Share” initiative.
After raking in a whopping £2.2 billion in profits, the building society launched the “Fairer Share” scheme last year, rewarding approximately 3.4 million members with £100 each, according to This is Money. With interest rates on the rise, the next round of bonuses could be even more generous.
Nationwide has committed to doling out annual “Fairer Share” rewards based on its financial performance, with further details anticipated to be unveiled on Thursday. To qualify for the “Fairer Share” bonus last year, members had to meet certain criteria.
Holding a minimum of £100 across one or more accounts was one such requirement. The scheme was open to those with mortgages, current accounts, and savings with Nationwide, and the payments were processed automatically.
Boasting around 16 million members, Nationwide is a financial heavyweight, reports the Mirror.
Meanwhile, Virgin Money shareholders are poised to cast their votes on a colossal £2.9 billion acquisition proposal from Nationwide this week. For the takeover to go ahead, Virgin Money requires a 75 percent approval rate from its voting shareholders.
However, Nationwide has faced criticism for not extending the vote to its own members.
Nationwide Building Society is poised to take over Virgin Money, with plans to run it as a separate entity before fully integrating it within the next six years, at which point the Virgin Money brand would be retired. A petition demanding that Nationwide members have a say in the merger has garnered over 5,000 signatures.
Nationwide’s Chairman Kevin Parry commented: “A combination with Virgin Money would accelerate Nationwide’s strategy and create a stronger, and more diverse, modern mutual. The combination would increase Nationwide’s scale and financial strength, put us in a stronger position to continue to provide Fairer Share Payments to eligible Nationwide members, and offer rates for mortgages and savings that are, on average, better than the market average.”
Echoing the positive sentiment, David Bennett, Chairman of Virgin Money UK, stated: “The board of Virgin Money is pleased that Nationwide recognises the considerable strengths and opportunities that exist across our business, with the potential acquisition delivering attractive value for our shareholders.
“We are confident that a combination would support an exciting new chapter for Virgin Money to benefit from Nationwide’s scale and ambition.”