Take-up of ISAs falls for first time

The total amount of new subscriptions into ISAs in 2011-12 dropped to £53.5bn, down from £53.7bn the previous year. The amount of new money in cash ISAs was £37.7bn, down from £38.2bn the year before. This may be a result of all-time low savings rates putting savers off. In 2012, the average interest available on cash ISA stood at 2.8%, considerably lower than the average rate of 5.1% on offer in 2008. Lower interest rates on savings accounts are down to Bank of England initiatives designed to boost lending to businesses, such as Quantitative Easing - introduced in Jauary 2009 - contr...