Money held in banks by largest charities increases to £16.2bn over the past year, report finds

The latest figures, from the charity data website Charity Financials, are based on data from the largest 5,000 UK charities by income, expenditure or net assets

The amount of money held in banks by the UK’s largest charities has increased by £300m over the past year to a total £16.2bn, according to a new report on charities and the banking sector.

The latest Charity Banking Spotlight, which is produced by the charity data website Charity Financials and based on the top 5,000 charities in terms of income, expenditure or net assets, says the most recent figure is still below the peak of £16.8bn in 2012, but almost £600m more than in 2014.

The report identifies the Charities Aid Foundation as having the most cash in hand or at the bank, with the charity having £768.8m.

CAF, which runs its own bank, had the most borrowing with £1bn – about £700m more than the charity in second place, Aston Student Villages.

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The Church Commissioners of England had the greatest change in cash levels over the past year, with a £49.1m increase to a total of £440.7m, the report says.

More than half of the charities surveyed have been with their bank for more than a decade, the report says, and HSBC saw the biggest fall in cash levels, with a drop of £287m.

Barclays, which also sponsored the report, was the most popular bank among the top 5,000 charities, and also is the bank of choice for a third of the top 100 charities in terms of income, the report says.

But NatWest holds the most cash on behalf of charities, with £3.2bn compared with Barclays’ £3.1bn, the report says.

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