Nationwide has provided an update after giving £100 cash bonuses to tens of thousands of members.
The building society had previously announced that many new members would receive a £100 cash gift, along with £120 in vouchers, and potentially an extra £60 for referrals.
The incentives were offered via Nationwide’s FlexStudent current account, specifically designed for first-year university students.
In a recent update, the financial institution said that over 80,000 students have opened a FlexStudent account, accounting for 46% of the total market.
The account also offers an interest and fee-free arranged overdraft of up to £1,000 in the first year, £2,000 in the second year, and £3,000 in the third year, as well as commission-free purchases and cash withdrawals abroad.
From July to October, it gifted students £100 cash and £10 of Just Eat vouchers every month for a year.
This year’s launch also featured a refer-a-friend scheme, enabling students to earn £20 per referral (up to two referrals), meaning they could gain up to £260 – or £280 if they were referred themselves.
To date, over 62,000 students have registered with Nationwide’s Just Eat portal, downloading 125,000 takeaway vouchers worth £1.25 million since its July launch.
As Christmas draws near, Nationwideexpects this figure to surge, with a total of £9.8 million of free food available throughout the 12-month offer.
Tom Riley, Director of Group Retail Products, said: “Students want great food and even greater value, and we’ve shown since launching our first student account in 2016 that we’re going from strength to strength.
“It’s also encouraging to see students opening accounts in person, as well as online, reinforcing our decision to invest in both digital and face-to-face service. Combined with the additional value we provide our members as a modern mutual – from better savings rates to paying a £100 Fairer Share Payment for the past three years – we believe there is every reason to join Nationwide.”