Santander has stepped up its efforts to "cross-sell" products to its customers by making its fee-free current account more widely available.
The Spanish banking giant launched its Zero Current Account earlier this year to coincide with the re-branding of its Abbey and Bradford & Bingley businesses, but only made it available to Santander mortgage customers.
Now it is extending the eligibility criteria of the account from March 8 to include people who have a Santander investment product. The move means around 2.5 million people in the UK will be eligible to open one of the accounts, said Santander.
The account does not have authorised or unauthorised overdraft charges, it does not levy fees for payments that bounce and customers will not be charged for withdrawing cash or buying goods abroad. It pays interest of 6% for the first year on balances of up to £2,500, providing at least £1,000 is paid into the account each month.
The group made no secret of its plans to expand its market share by undercutting its rivals through offering market-leading products and by cross-selling as many products as possible to its customers.
