Think low, very low. It’s actually none. According to the website savingschampion.co.uk, there are no instant access savings accounts on the market at the moment that give basic rate taxpayers the power to beat CPI inflation. To do this they would need to pay 3.13% or higher, something achieved by six notice accounts and a range of cash ISAs, but nothing where you can get to your money easily.

There’s a mention of Barclays’ e-savings account which caught our eye, because a member of our team closed his account last year once he realised it was only paying 0.10% interest. It’s taking liberties even calling that a savings account…

Retail savings do come with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme cushion that protects up to £85,000, but what if you have exceeded that amount? There is no protection there and you’re not getting a good rate of return.

You might as well nullthat can offer a higher rate of return – typically 8-12 per cent. Businesses are willing to pay a higher rate than banks because their borrowing is not readily available at lower rates and you’ll be supporting businesses to grow in a recession.

Plus, if you need access to your cash, you can always sell your micro loan through our marketplace to another lender, either at a premium or a discount, which will take an average of seven days.