Pocket money... a futile wait for higher rates

⬤ Savers who hope to see interest rates rise are going to be disappointed. “The Bank of England raised rates again this week, but unfortunately it’s not going to be enough to boost savings rates because it was already priced in,” says Sarah Coles in The Yorkshire Post. Savings rates have “barely budged” since the base rate began to lift last October.

When the base rate was 0.1% the best easy access savings rate was 0.66%. Now it is just 0.75%, while the best savings rate is still under 0.9%. Over the past two years, savers have been moving their cash back to the big high street banks, who now have “so much cash washing around” that “they don’t need to offer decent savings rates… They’re essentially operating as if rates haven’t really risen.”

⬤ In October 2021, HM Revenue and Customs said it would send “educational” notes to crypto investors warning them that they may have to pay tax on their profits, says Lauren Almeida in The Daily Telegraph. However, a freedom of information request by wealth manager Quilter has found that the letters have been sent to just 8,239 people – an estimated 0.4% of British crypto investors. More than a fifth of cryptocurrency investors have holdings worth more than £10,000. If you make more than £12,300 a year in capital gains, your profits are liable for tax.

⬤ Make sure somebody knows where to find your will, says Angelique Ruzicka on This is Money. A “largely unnoticed” change means that the government no longer carries out will searches for people who die without an easily traceable next of kin. These searches used to be carried out by the Treasury Solicitor’s Bona Vacantia (“unclaimed goods”) Division (BVD), but were ditched as not cost effective. If a next of kin or will can’t be found, then the Crown, via the BVD, inherits the estate.

You can file your will with the Central Probate Registry via HM Courts & Tribunal service for £20. “If you feel awkward about telling people you have made a will, it is worth noting that you do not need to tell anyone what the contents of your will are,” Vanina Wittenburg of Hunters Law told This is Money.