OakNorth Bank

Who they are

OakNorth Bank is a British bank built primarily to serve scaling businesses - typically those with between £1m and £100m in turnover. It was founded by entrepreneurs Rishi Khosla and Joel Perlman, who gained regulatory approval in early 2015. The founders had experienced the gap in the market first-hand while growing their previous company: they applied for a bank loan and were turned down despite being profitable. Their answer was to build a digital bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs.

OakNorth secured a full banking licence from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in March 2015, and launched flexible debt financing alongside a range of savings accounts six months later in September 2015. Since then it has provided over £12bn in funding, helping create 56,000 new jobs and 34,000 new homes. For personal savers, OakNorth is essentially the funding engine running behind their ISA and savings rates - your deposits help back loans to British businesses.

OakNorth offers a range of savings accounts for both businesses and personal use, and all of them can be managed online and via its mobile app. It holds an excellent 4.8-star rating on Trustpilot from more than 14,000 reviews, with 86% of customers rating it five stars.

Savings accounts

Right now, OakNorth's personal savings range on DepositScout includes two Fixed Rate Cash ISAs. Both are open from just £1, which makes them accessible to a much wider pool of savers than many competitors that demand £1,000 or more to get started.

The 12 Month Fixed Rate Cash ISA currently pays 4.53% AER, and the 24 Month Fixed Rate Cash ISA sits at 4.55% AER. The difference between the two terms is small, so how long you want to lock your money away is the more important question.

One thing worth highlighting: if you need to get out early, OakNorth won't close your account. An early withdrawal penalty applies - in the form of an interest reduction - but the account stays open. That compares favourably to some providers that shut the account entirely the moment you make an early withdrawal.

There are no introductory bonuses on these accounts, so the rate you see is the real rate, not a headline figure padded by a short-lived bonus.

FSCS protection

OakNorth is listed on the FSCS register as an authorised UK bank, so your deposits are protected under the scheme. All OakNorth savings products, including Fixed Term, Easy Access Tracker, Notice and Notice Base Rate Tracker, Simple Saver and Fixed Rate Cash ISA accounts, are FSCS-protected up to £120,000 per eligible person.

That £120,000 limit is higher than the standard £85,000 threshold you'll see at most banks - the DepositScout data confirms this figure for OakNorth's accounts. If you hold accounts with multiple brands under the same banking licence, your combined protection is still limited to £120,000 across that group , so it's always worth checking whether any other provider you use shares OakNorth's licence. Based on available information, OakNorth holds its own independent banking licence and does not share it with another consumer savings brand.

Is it right for you?

OakNorth suits savers who want a clean, fixed-rate ISA from a well-established digital bank, without a large opening deposit standing in the way. The £1 minimum is genuinely one of the lowest in the fixed ISA market. The rates are competitive, the FSCS coverage is solid, and the absence of bonus rates means you're not on a clock to switch before a teaser expires.

There is no current account switching offer from OakNorth, and the bank does not operate branches, so if in-person service matters to you it may not be the right fit. Everything is handled online or through the app, which works smoothly for most savers but is worth knowing upfront.

As always, rates change - the live figures shown on this page are the most up-to-date numbers we have, so check those before you apply.