Intelligent Finance

Time was when IF would allow you to offset your mortgage, personal loan or credit card against current and savings balances. Nowadays only mortgage offsetting is allowed. However, IF claims to be the only bank to allow you to offset against a cash-ISA.

The system is organised on the 'jar' principle (e.g. current account jar, mortgage jar etc). Current, savings, cash-ISA, mortgage and credit card accounts can be managed online, but not personal loans. Your credit card is accessed separately, with its own log-on name and password. For those with excess funds, an automatic daily 'balance sweep' can be scheduled from a lower-earning to a higher earning account.

Although your current and savings jars are aggregated for purposes of offsetting, each jar must be operated responsibly. For instance, your current account must remain in the black irrespective of how much you hold in your savings account, on pain of an unauthorised overdraft interest charge.