Cancer Research UK celebrates 20 years of credit card donations

This month, HBOS (under the Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands) and Cancer Research UK are celebrating the 20th anniversary of one of the UK's most successful charity credit card partnerships. Since its launch in 1988, the Cancer Research UK credit card has had more users than any other scheme of its type and has raised more than £12 million to beat cancer.

The Cancer Research UK charity credit card offers an exclusive 0% on both balance transfers and purchases for 9 months via halifax.co.uk or bankofscotlandandhalifax.co.uk. HBOS will also make a one-off donation of £20 to Cancer Research UK the first time a new customer uses their charity credit card, with further donations made based on purchases made on the card.

The card features included:

HBOS donate £20 the first time a new customer uses their Cancer Research UK Charity Card
0% on balance transfers and purchases for the first 9 months (fee of 3% applies for each balance transfer)
0.25% of all purchases donated by HBOS to Cancer Research UK
Typical 16.9% APR (variable)

Paul Farthing, from Cancer Research UK, said: "Our partnership with HBOS has been hugely successful. The money raised in the past twenty years has played a vital role in helping us fund the charity's research into the causes and treatments of all forms of cancer. For example, £12 million is equivalent to running more than 13 laboratories at the charity's prestigious London Research Institute (LRI) for one year.

"In the time since we launched the charity credit card with HBOS, we've seen significant progress in cancer research. The overall cancer death rate has dropped by a fifth in the past twenty years and half of people now survive cancer for more than five years, compared to just over a third of people twenty years ago. And, while we know that more than one in three people in the UK will develop cancer at some time in their lives, the good news is that we are also seeing more and more people surviving thanks to earlier detection, more effective diagnosis and improved treatments made possible by ongoing research into cancer."

Ken Stannard, head of HBOS credit cards, comments: "To be celebrating this momentous anniversary of our partnership with Cancer Research UK is evidence of the ongoing popularity of charity credit cards and the real difference that they can make. It's great to know that donations made through the HBOS charity credit card has helped Cancer Research UK's life-saving work and we look to continuing this successful partnership in the future."