May 2025
The Starting Line: Banks Shift Gears Toward the Mass Affluent
Over the past few years, retail banks have increasingly turned their attention toward the mass affluent –> customers who aren’t considered ultra-wealthy, but hold meaningful disposable income and assets. Slowing interest-rate revenues, rising competition from fintechs, and the promise of long-term cross-selling opportunities have made this segment too valuable to ignore.
Below, I compare premium features across a range of banks – from legacy institutions (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, etc.) to newer alternatives (Monzo, Starling, Revolut, etc.) – and rank how useful each perk is. We also explore each bank’s strategy and target segment, then conclude with where banks stand on generosity and how they could improve in the future.
Lap 1: The Perks that Power the Race
Before comparing which competitors currently have the competitive edge, it’s worth looking at which features actually drive value for customers. Today, Premium accounts are often built around lifestyle convenience, travel freedom, and financial peace of mind. But not every perk carries equal weight…
Key Premium Features and their Value
It is important to note the features not being included are the access to retail wealth investment platforms – this is to be covered in a later article
- Worldwide Travel Insurance
Use-value: Turning convenience into loyalty. Known as a ‘gateway perk’ that hooks affluent customers by offering tangible savings on something they already buy annually.
Strategy: Targeted at frequent travellers and retirees with the aim of positioning the premium account as an integral, cost-effective lifestyle. - Mobile Phone & Gadget Insurance
Use-value: Demonstrates modern relevance. Often includes family-wide cover – providing reassurance and everyday value. Adds to the account becoming an integral part of customer lifestyle.
Strategy: Targeted at digitally active households and younger customers with expensive technology. - Breakdown Cover
Use-value: Lifestyle protection. Often for those with families.
Strategy: Appeals to suburban professionals and those in the countryside. - Home Emergency Cover
Use-value: Niche perk aimed at established homeowners.
Strategy: Adds differentiation, widening the bank’s value to more aspects of life. - Airport Lounge Access
Use-value:
Strategy: A ‘status symbol’ – a signal of this account being upmarket, feeling of innate customer importance. - Concierge Service
Use-value: Differentiates at the top without cutting prices.
Strategy: For time-poor customers, often professionals with highly intensive professions. Replicates ‘the private banker experience.’ - Fee-less Foreign Spending
Use-value: Reinforces a frictionless, borderless experience. For challenger banks, it’s brand-defining.
Strategy: Targets customers who are globally mobile. - Cashback and Rewards
Use-value: Encourages high frequency usage of the account, driving loyalty.
Strategy: Targeted at the mass-market. - Interest on Balances
Use-value: Encourages deposit savings / stickiness and reduces the movement of savings to competitors.
Strategy: Allows loyal customers’ accounts to ‘work harder’. - Relationship Management
Use-value: Keeps high-value customers loyal through human connection.
Strategy: Symbol of exclusivity, targeting more affluent customers. - Overdraft Benefits
Use-value: Low-cost perk which protects relationship as the most defensive feature of the premium package.
Strategy: Retention for mass-affluent professionals who may have variable cash flow. - Lifestyle & Design Extras
Use-value: Such as metal cards, or streaming and entertainment bundles. Reflects lifestyle integration.
Strategy: Branding for younger and image-conscious customers.
Which perks matter the most?
Not all perks win equal applause in the wealth race. Some save customers real money, time and solve everyday problems. Others simply look good on a brochure. The key to winning mass affluent loyalty is knowing which benefits genuinely create value – and which are just noise.
The Power Players: Perks that Pay Off
The heavyweight features building the foundation of most packages, and driving customer loyalty are travel insurance and fee-free foreign spending. This is because they deliver visible savings and peace of mind for the globally mobile. Furthermore, all customers can use them. Overall, they make customers feel protected and rewarded.
Gadget and Breakdown cove follow closely, given the wide volume of customers they serve – ‘the everyday affluent’. A customer who replaces a lost phone through their bank is far less likely to switch next year.
Midfield Value: Engagement and Lifestyle
Cashback and Rewards keep customers active. They create micro-moments of satisfaction that build daily engagement.
Interest on balances appeals to the financially savvy customers. While often only small interest rates, they carry symbolic weight.
Lifestyle Extras, such as lounge access, concierge, and streaming subscriptions. These features drive huge demand from status-seekers and experience lovers. They don’t often drive switching among competitors, but they deepen emotional attachment when paired with strong core value proposition.
Premium Feature Matrix: How the Banks Stack Up
| Bank | Travel Insurance | Tech Insurance | Breakdown Cover | Home Emergency | Lounge Access | Concierge | No FX Fees | Cashback / Rewards | Interest on Balance | Relationship Management | 0% Overdraft | Metal Card |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barclays | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||
| HSBC | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||||
| Lloyds | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||
| NatWest / RBS | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |||
| Santander | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |||||||||
| Nationwide | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||||
| Halifax | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |||||
| TSB | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||||||
| Co-operative Bank | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |||||||||
| Monzo | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||||
| Starling | ✔️ | |||||||||||
| Revolut | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |||||
| Chase UK | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||||||||||
Ranking the Contenders
Podium Finishers: The All-Rounders
Nationwide FlexPlus, Monzo Max, Starling, and Chase UK consistently score highest on value-for-money and customer satisfaction.
- Nationwide wins through substance – unmatched family insurance and reliable real-world protection.
- Monzo Max captures lifestyle relevance, appealing to younger affluents who want flexibility, fun perks, and a modern digital feel.
- Starling dominates service satisfaction, proving that great UX and fee-free banking can outperform traditional “premium” tiers.
- Chase UK leverages free cashback and 0% FX fees to undercut everyone – a Silicon Valley play for mass loyalty.
These banks combine practical value with trust and usability – they make customers feel valued, not just sold to.
Upper Midfield: The Reliable Performers
Virgin Money, Lloyds, Halifax, and Revolut deliver strong benefits but sometimes stumble on experience or clarity.
- Virgin and Lloyds appeal to families with solid insurance bundles and lifestyle extras, but digital appeal lags.
- Halifax offers genuine utility – travel, breakdown, home repair – yet struggles to feel aspirational.
- Revolut remains the wildcard: sleek, global, and tech-rich, but its tier complexity can overwhelm average users.
These players are well-engineered but inconsistent – great for specific demographics, less for universal appeal.
Back of the Pack: The Traditionalists
NatWest, Barclays, and HSBC still rely heavily on brand heritage and concierge-style exclusivity.
- They target upper-income professionals and legacy private clients, but the everyday user still finds little reason to pay.
- Perks feel fragmented – premium credit cards handle the “luxury,” while current accounts lag behind in usability.
- Their challenge isn’t product design – it’s perception. Customers increasingly expect premium to mean smart and seamless, not just status and service lines.
Lagging Behind
Santander, Co-operative, and TSB sit at the rear. Their offerings are outdated or stripped of real differentiation.
- Limited travel and gadget cover, modest or no rewards, and minimal lifestyle relevance make these products hard to justify.
- Even loyal customers rarely cite satisfaction; most stay out of inertia, not enthusiasm.
The winners of 2025’s wealth race aren’t necessarily those charging the highest fees or offering the fanciest perks.
They’re the banks that deliver clarity, convenience, and credibility.
Final Lap: The Road Ahead for Premium Banking
The race for the mass affluent is only accelerating – and customers stand to gain the most. Britain’s 13 million mass-affluent adults, controlling roughly £3.8 trillion in investable wealth, have become banking’s fastest-growing battleground. To win their loyalty, banks will need to make premium propositions more personal, digital, and meaningful.
1. Personalization over Packages
The next stage is modular banking. Instead of one-size-fits-all bundles, banks could let customers pick and mix perks – for example, choose two from five core benefits for a lower monthly fee. Barclays has tested this approach with its add-on “Packs,” though its pricing still trails Nationwide’s FlexPlus (about £60 a year more for similar cover). True customization would cut waste, improve transparency, and avoid the mis-selling problems that once dogged packaged accounts.
2. Partnerships That Add Real Value
Future competition will hinge on brand partnerships. Expect more Monzo-style deals with Greggs or Revolut’s tie-ups with travel and lifestyle brands. Barclays already works with British Airways for Avios rewards, and others could follow suit with streaming, fitness, or retail discounts. For banks, the trick is negotiating perks that feel high-value to users but low-cost to deliver.
3. Digital Experience as the New Luxury
A premium label means little if the app crashes. The challengers have proved that service quality equals status: Starling and Chase now top the UK’s satisfaction rankings (CMA 2025). Legacy banks are responding by integrating claims and support directly into apps – Lloyds already lets Platinum customers submit insurance claims in-app. The next step is dedicated premium chat or priority support, bringing the private-bank experience to the packaged-account level.
4. Inclusive and Ethical Perks
Expect a shift toward socially conscious benefits. Nationwide, for instance, earned an Eco Provider award in 2023 for its sustainability efforts. Future premium tiers may include carbon-offset travel, ethical investment options, or automatic donations to green projects. Removing age caps – like Nationwide’s unlimited travel-cover age limit – and adding flexible family coverage will also become table stakes.
5. Smarter Pricing and Bundling
As interest rates stabilise, premium value will come from integrated offers: discounted mortgages, higher-rate savings, or bundled credit cards with shared insurance. HSBC already offers “preferential rates” for Premier clients, and Barclays links Premier status to its best savings accounts. Combining these into one transparent monthly subscription could make premium banking feel rewarding again.
6. Learning from Fintechs
Instant alerts, virtual cards, and investment tools are no longer optional. Revolut and Monzo have shown that younger affluents expect the same frictionless control they get from streaming or food-delivery apps. Traditional banks that adopt these innovations – without losing their regulatory trust advantage – will thrive.
Jono does Retail Banking 