As some sense of a new normal set in, with shops closed and many people working from home, we noticed some new patterns emerging with the way our customers were spending and saving.

Savings

Our existing Tandem customers have managed to save more than ever by using our Autosavings features. With less to do and spend on during the lockdown, Tandem customers are able to funnel what they would have spent on transportation, a pint, or a dinner out right back into their savings account.

Additionally, we found that since lockdown began, reinvestment in fixed saving accounts has increased by over 90%. We attribute this jump to those Tandem customers whose financial situation hasn't been extremely compromised by Covid-19. It’s likely that these individuals had a larger lump sum of funds available and were keen to ensure their savings earned interest and remained protected and locked away with us.

Credit Cards

Card spend has decreased by over 25% since the lockdown began. This is likely because many individuals use their credit cards to purchase big ticket items and float their supplementary expenses when their income falls short. Now, as a result of Covid-19, we no longer see the usual spend on flights, hotels, festivals, or holiday packages as it's all been on hold.

Additionally, many individuals may be experiencing a change in their financial life due to job loss or furloughing. Covid-19 has left several people in a more precarious financial situation, which has understandably led individuals to be more cautious overall with their spending patterns. Overall, we find that credit card spend is largely upheld by Tandem’s customers who use their cards to purchase essentials and so, as you may have suspected, there’s been an increase in spending on groceries across the board.

These trends reveal that several of us are going through a difficult time financially and wish to carefully protect our funds. It’s worth noting that Tandem is doing its best to help all of our credit card customers who are experiencing financial difficulties as a result of Covid-19. If you are facing difficulty, we urge you to contact us so that we can discuss ways we can help.