The building society said it was adding a prize draw on 24 January due to the account’s popularity.

Start to Save is an online, instant access, regular savings account that pays 1 per cent (variable). It is designed to encourage people to build a savings nest egg and gives them the chance to win prizes of £100 by saving regularly.

More than 319,000 people have opened a Start to Save account since they launched in February 2020.

To be eligible for the prize draws, savers need to increase their balance in the account by between £50 and £100 in each of the three calendar months leading up to the month of the prize draw.

The more people save, the more prizes there are since the fund in each draw equates to one per cent of the total balance increase across all accounts meeting the entry criteria.

July’s draw saw a prize pot of £275,600, with 2,756 savers winning £100 each.

The next draw takes place on 21 October.

More than 144,000 members who had less than £100 in savings with Nationwide previously now have more than £100 as a result of Start to Save – equating to 41 per cent of all the accounts opened, according to the building society.

Tom Riley, director of banking and savings at Nationwide, said: “We set up Start to Save to help foster a savings culture across the country given that the Money and Pensions Service had previously said there were more than 11 million people with less than £100 in savings.

“After five prize draws, it’s clear that the account has made a difference and it’s great to see so many members who had less than £100 in savings now having a more substantial nest egg as a result of Start to Save.”