AcornBank demo rates and charges
Real-looking numbers, fictional products. These rates are invented for this demonstration, not collected from live bank offers, and they are not available to anyone.
| Product | Range | Rate, reward or charge | Access or term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current accounts | 0.00% credit interest; £0.00 monthly account fee | Daily payment and transfer scenarios; no real payment service | |
| Current accounts | 0.00% credit interest; £6.00 monthly account fee | Routine business payment scenarios; no real transfers or merchant services | |
| Current accounts | 29.9% EAR (variable), with the first £50.00 interest-free | Up to £1,000 arranged borrowing; the first £50 is interest-free in this demo model | |
| Savings | 3.75% AER / gross p.a. (variable) | Unlimited withdrawals in the demo; no notice period | |
| Savings | 4.40% AER / gross p.a. (fixed) | No top-ups; early closure allowed in the model with a 90-day interest deduction; otherwise principal and interest at maturity | |
| Savings | 3.60% AER / tax-free (variable) | Unlimited withdrawals in the demo; flexible, so money withdrawn can be replaced within the same demo tax year | |
| Savings | 4.30% AER / tax-free (fixed) | No withdrawals during the 12-month term in the model; closing or transferring early costs a 90-day interest deduction | |
| Savings | 4.60% AER / gross p.a. (fixed) | No top-ups or withdrawals during the 12-month term; principal and interest available at maturity | |
| Savings | 4.75% AER / gross p.a. (variable, tracking the demo Forest Base Rate of 4.50% plus 0.25%) | No top-ups or withdrawals during the 24-month term; principal and interest available at maturity | |
| Mortgages | 4.59% fixed for 2 years; then 6.49% assumed variable rate | Monthly capital-and-interest repayments over 25 years in the illustration | |
| Loans | 6.9% APR representative (fixed); £1,000.00 to £25,000.00 over 1 to 7 years | Fixed monthly repayments over 1 to 7 years; early settlement allowed with up to 58 days’ interest in the model | |
| Loans | 5.9% APR representative (fixed); £7,500.00 to £40,000.00 over 2 to 10 years | Fixed monthly repayments over 2 to 10 years; early settlement allowed with up to 58 days’ interest in the model | |
| Loans | 7.9% APR representative (fixed); £3,000.00 to £30,000.00 over 1 to 5 years | Fixed monthly repayments over 1 to 5 years; the customer owns the wheelbarrow from day one; early settlement with up to 58 days’ interest | |
| Credit cards | 0.50% cashback; 24.9% illustrative APR (variable) | 0.5% cashback on eligible purchases, capped at £10 per month; borrowing can cost more than the reward | |
| Credit cards | 1.00% cashback; 27.9% illustrative APR (variable); £24.00 annual fee | 1% cashback on eligible purchases, capped at £25 per month, for a £24 annual fee; borrowing costs more than the reward | |
| Credit cards | 0% on purchases for 18 months, then 24.9% illustrative APR (variable) | 0% on purchases for 18 months from opening, then 24.9% APR (variable); missing a payment ends the offer in the model | |
| Credit cards | 0% on balance transfers for 24 months with a 3% fee, then 26.9% illustrative APR (variable) | 0% on balance transfers for 24 months with a 3% transfer fee, then 26.9% APR (variable); new purchases are not interest-free | |
| Credit cards | 34.9% illustrative APR (variable); credit limits from £250.00 | Small limits, a high APR and no fee; the story rewards paying the statement in full every month | |
| Investments | 3.90% AER / gross p.a. (variable) | Unlimited withdrawals; annual interest remains in the pot unless removed | |
| Investments | 0.45% total annual charge; growth not guaranteed, illustrated at 2%, 5%, 8% | Sell holdings at any time; story proceeds arrive within four working days; the value can fall as well as rise | |
| Investments | 0.45% total annual charge; growth not guaranteed, illustrated at 2%, 5%, 8% | Withdraw at any time; money taken out cannot be replaced in the same demo tax year; the value can fall as well as rise | |
| Investments | 0.50% total annual charge; 20% demo tax relief on contributions; growth not guaranteed | No withdrawals before age 57 in the model; from then, up to 25% as a tax-free lump sum and the rest as taxable income | |
| Insurance | From £9.50 a month; £100.00 excess; cover up to £330,000.00 | Claims in the story are reported to the branch and paid less the excess; a 14-day cooling-off period applies in the model | |
| Insurance | From £5.95 a month; £75.00 excess; cover up to £5,000,000.00 | Any number of trips of up to 31 days during the policy year; claims paid less the excess | |
| Insurance | From £8.20 a month; £0.00 excess; cover up to £300,000.00 | No cash value; the sum is paid on a valid claim during the term and premiums stop when the term ends |
Savings: interest after 12 months
Interest earned in the first year on a single opening deposit. Where a deposit exceeds a product’s balance cap or ISA allowance the cell says so instead of inventing a figure.
| Savings product | Demo AER | £1,000 deposit | £5,000 deposit | £10,000 deposit | £25,000 deposit | £50,000 deposit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.75% | £37.50 | £187.50 | £375.00 | £937.50 | £1,875.00 | |
| 4.40% | £44.00 | £220.00 | £440.00 | £1,100.00 | £2,200.00 | |
| 3.60% | £36.00 | £180.00 | £360.00 | Above cap | Above cap | |
| 4.30% | £43.00 | £215.00 | £430.00 | Above cap | Above cap | |
| 4.60% | £46.00 | £230.00 | £460.00 | £1,150.00 | £2,300.00 | |
| 4.75% | £47.50 | £237.50 | £475.00 | £1,187.50 | £2,375.00 | |
| 3.90% | £39.00 | £195.00 | £390.00 | £975.00 | £1,950.00 |
Assumptions: one opening deposit, no additions or withdrawals, no fees or tax, and the stated rate for the whole period. Interest is credited once at each anniversary and rounded to the nearest penny, with half-pennies rounded up. AER and gross p.a. match in this annual-credit model.
Savings: how £10,000 could grow over five years
| Savings product | Demo AER | After 1 year | After 3 years | After 5 years | Total interest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.75% | £10,375.00 | £11,167.71 | £12,020.99 | £2,020.99 | |
| 3.60% | £10,360.00 | £11,119.35 | £11,934.36 | £1,934.36 | |
| 3.90% | £10,390.00 | £11,216.22 | £12,108.14 | £2,108.14 |
The variable rate is held constant solely to show annual compounding. Fixed-term products are excluded because their rates end at maturity with no promised renewal rate.
Investments: projected value of £10,000 after ten years
| Investment product | Annual charge | Low growth 2% | Mid growth 5% | High growth 8% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.45% | £11,662.70 | £15,604.16 | £20,706.38 | |
| 0.45% | £11,662.70 | £15,604.16 | £20,706.38 | |
| 0.50% | £11,605.41 | £15,529.69 | £20,610.32 |
A single lump sum, no further contributions, growth applied monthly after the annual charge, and no tax inside the wrapper. The value can fall below £10,000.
Insurance: monthly premiums
| Policy | From | Excess | Cover up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| £9.50 a month | £100.00 | £330,000.00 | |
| £5.95 a month | £75.00 | £5,000,000.00 | |
| £8.20 a month | £0.00 | £300,000.00 |
Demo premiums for a story customer aged 35 with no claims; real premiums depend on real details.
Borrowing: what the demo charges
| Borrowing product | Demo rate | Scenario | Model cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.59% fixed for 2 years; then 6.49% assumed variable rate | £200,000 over 25 years | £1,121.91 a month for 24 months, then £1,334.37 | |
| 6.9% APR representative (fixed) | £10,000 over 60 months | £196.56 a month; £1,793.43 interest | |
| 5.9% APR representative (fixed) | £10,000 over 60 months | £192.15 a month; £1,529.04 interest | |
| 7.9% APR representative (fixed) | £10,000 over 60 months | £200.99 a month; £2,059.14 interest | |
| 0.50% cashback; 24.9% illustrative APR (variable) | £1,200 repaid over 12 months at the standard rate | £150.82 interest; £1,350.82 repaid | |
| 1.00% cashback; 27.9% illustrative APR (variable); £24.00 annual fee | £1,200 repaid over 12 months at the standard rate | £167.68 interest; £1,367.68 repaid | |
| 0% on purchases for 18 months, then 24.9% illustrative APR (variable) | £1,200 repaid over 12 months at the standard rate | £150.82 interest; £1,350.82 repaid | |
| 0% on balance transfers for 24 months with a 3% fee, then 26.9% illustrative APR (variable) | £1,200 repaid over 12 months at the standard rate | £162.09 interest; £1,362.09 repaid | |
| 34.9% illustrative APR (variable); credit limits from £250.00 | £1,200 repaid over 12 months at the standard rate | £206.03 interest; £1,406.03 repaid | |
| 29.9% EAR (variable), with the first £50.00 interest-free | £500 overdrawn for 30 days | £9.78 interest |
Each product page carries the full schedule with its assumptions. A cost is not a return.
How to read the figures
AER (annual equivalent rate) measures annual interest including compounding where applicable. Our savings credit interest annually, so gross p.a. and AER match; tax-free means the demo ISA wrapper deducts nothing. Fixed rates apply only for their stated term; multi-year variable projections hold today’s demo rate constant as an assumption.
APR (annual percentage rate) describes the cost of credit-card and loan borrowing; the examples use an equivalent monthly rate derived from it. EAR (effective annual rate) describes overdraft interest; the overdraft examples convert it to a daily equivalent. The mortgage model recalculates payments after the initial fixed rate and includes an upfront arrangement fee in its total cost. Growth scenarios for investments are illustrations after charges, not predictions. These different measures must not be treated as interchangeable returns.
Rate changes in the story
Every table above is calculated from the live product records, so when an author changes a rate the figures follow. Fixed rates, notice periods and terms are shown on each product page; see the savings range or the help hub. No figure on this site is a quotation, an offer or a prediction of what any real bank will pay or charge.
Related reading
- This Is a Fictional Bank — No Real Banking Here
- Site Map — Every Branch of AcornBank
- Branches — Literally and Figuratively
- Help — Unruffle Your Tail
- How to Bank — Online, in the App, in Branch or by Phone
- Browse AcornBank — Follow Your Nose for Nuts
- Careers — Join the Fictional Nutforce
AcornBank: entirely fictional banking, exceptionally committed squirrels.