One building society is going above the odds and offering new and existing customers a current account with five per cent interest on balances up to £2,500.

The Big Four banks – Barclays, Lloyds, Natwest and HSBC – offer just 0.1 per cent on balances held in mainstream accounts.

The Halifax and Bank of Scotland (HBOS) group, which already has a market share of 15 to 20 per cent for regular accounts, is launching a five per cent interest rate on its new current account.

Collectively, customers could be £1.4 billion pounds better off each year by switching to the new Halifax account.

Research shows that nine out of ten UK customers think a decent rate of interest on their current account is important and just under two thirds of the Big Four's current account customers would switch bank to get 50 times more interest on their credit balances.

"Customers are voting with their feet and leaving the Big Four. This account provides another big incentive to do just that," said Benny Higgins, CEO at HBOS.