Nationwide Building Society has reduced the interest rate on its personal loans of between £7,500 and £14,999 to 7.9 per cent, a market-leading figure.

 

Available to the company's new personal loan customers, the interest rate has dropped by 0.3 per cent from its previous figure of 8.2 per cent typical APR.

 

Other providers are currently offering higher interest rates - Royal Bank of Scotland, Natwest, Alliance and Leicester and Abbey personal loan rates are at 8.9 per cent, while other such as Halifax Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and Barclays charge 9.9 per cent.

 

In a statement, the building society said: With this typical rate, Nationwide remains lower than all high street banks and the same low rate applies whether the loan is taken out through branch, telephone or internet .

 

Recent research by Moneyfacts.co.uk showed that average rates on a personal loan for £5,000 have seen a 44 per cent rise in the past two years.