Virgin money to charge
account fee

Customers who choose to have a current account with Virgin Money will be charged a monthly fee when the service is launched next year, it has been confirmed.

In a bid to make the accounts more transparent, the group will charge customers to bank with it.

It said there will be no high overdraft charges, nor will customers need to pay a set amount into their accounts per month.

Currently, most banking groups do not charge a fee from customers, but impose high charges if they go into the red.

The group stressed that it was still at an early stage of developing its current account, and had not yet decided exactly what the charge would be.

But it is thought it would be the first bank to charge a compulsory monthly fee, regardless of how much consumers deposit in the account.

Jayne-Anne Gadhia, chief executive of Virgin Money, told The Sunday Times: "Most people know there is no such thing as free banking.

"Banks have to cover the cost of free current accounts with hidden charges such as overdraft fees.

"We're definitely planning to charge for current accounts and be transparent about it."

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