Worked at Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank in the UK? Your pension probably still exists. The name on your payslip may not.

If you worked for Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank in the UK, this page is for you. Two banks with their own histories were brought into one company by an Act of Parliament, and the owner above them changed three times.

What happened

The Virgin Money UK prospectus lists, for 1920, that Midland Bank bought Clydesdale Bank (Source: Virgin Money UK PLC prospectus of 31 July 2018, read 3 November 2026). The same prospectus lists, for 1987, that National Australia Bank acquired Clydesdale Bank (Source: Virgin Money UK PLC prospectus of 31 July 2018, read 3 November 2026). The same prospectus lists, for 1990, that National Australia Bank acquired Yorkshire Bank (Source: Virgin Money UK PLC prospectus of 31 July 2018, read 3 November 2026). The National Australia Group Europe Act 2001, dated 4 December 2001, provided for the fusion of the undertakings of Clydesdale Bank PLC and Yorkshire Bank PLC, by transfer to Clydesdale Bank PLC of the undertaking of Yorkshire Bank PLC (Source: National Australia Group Europe Act 2001, legislation.gov.uk, read 3 November 2026). The prospectus says that under that Act, in 2004, Clydesdale Bank PLC took over the assets, rights, liabilities and obligations of Yorkshire Bank (Source: Virgin Money UK PLC prospectus of 31 July 2018, read 3 November 2026). The prospectus records the demerger of the CYBG group from National Australia Bank and its stock market listing in 2016 (Source: Virgin Money UK PLC prospectus of 31 July 2018, read 3 November 2026). Virgin Money's own page, updated on 1 October 2024, says that Nationwide completed its acquisition of Virgin Money that day (Source: Virgin Money, Virgin Money and Nationwide page, read 3 November 2026). The same page refers to Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank products and services as part of what Virgin Money offered (Source: Virgin Money, Virgin Money and Nationwide page, read 3 November 2026). Virgin Money's question and answer document says its business transferred to Nationwide on 2 April 2026, after court approval on 23 February 2026 (Source: Virgin Money, Your questions answered on the transfer to Nationwide, read 3 November 2026). Companies House lists the name Yorkshire Bank public limited company for the company from 25 August 1911 to 3 October 2022 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). Companies House records the nature of business of Yorkshire Bank Limited as a non-trading company (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026). Companies House lists the name Clydesdale Bank PLC for the company from 16 December 2005 to 28 July 2026 (Source: Companies House, the company's list of previous names, read 3 November 2026).

Why the trail is hard

The two brand names stayed on the high street after the companies behind them were joined, so a Yorkshire Bank payslip from the 2000s can name a company that no longer trades. The owner changed in 1987 and 1990, in 2016 and in 2024, and the company's own name changed again in 2026. We have not read a source that says which company employed a given person on each of those days.

Which era were you in?

The employer's name and owner changed over the years, so the first question is which one you worked for. This holds for the dates in the left column.

Which pension arrangement applied to you depends on the company that employed you in those years and on your own terms. This page does not name a scheme or say who holds one today. A name that is right for the bank today may not have been right for your years, so we do not guess. Your report names it.

Not sure which row fits? Start the free check and tell us when you worked at Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank.

Do I have a pension from my Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank years?

It depends first on when you left. The law set a minimum, and a scheme could always be more generous than the law.

If you left after 6 April 1988 with 2 years or more of service, you very likely have a preserved pension, if you were in the scheme.

Sources: the age 26 and 5 year rule, Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16, paragraph 6(1), read 20 October 2026, in force from 6 April 1975 (Social Security Act 1973 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1973, read 20 October 2026). The age condition ended on 1 January 1986 (Social Security Act 1985, section 1, read 20 October 2026, and Social Security Act 1985 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1985, read 20 October 2026). Five years became two with effect from 6 April 1988 (Social Security Act 1973, Schedule 16 as amended, note on the Social Security Act 1986, section 10, read 20 October 2026). Two years today, and 30 days for money purchase service that began on or after 1 October 2015 (Pension Schemes Act 1993, section 71, read 20 October 2026).

The free official route comes first

The UK government's free Pension Tracing Service gives you contact details for a workplace pension scheme from the name of an employer. It has a limit, in its own words: "This service will not tell you whether you have a pension, or what its value is." (Source: GOV.UK, Find pension contact details, read 20 October 2026.)

With an old City bank, the name is the hard part. The name on your payslip is rarely the name on the record today, and a search for the wrong name finds the wrong scheme or nothing you recognise.

Former colleagues

We have not yet checked for alumni groups or reunions for Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank, so we list none. If you know of one, the notice board below is coming for exactly this.

Frequently asked questions

I worked for Yorkshire Bank. Is this my page? Yes. Yorkshire Bank PLC was fused into Clydesdale Bank PLC by an Act of Parliament, and the records of your years can sit under either name. Tell us your years and the name on your payslip when you order.

Is Clydesdale Bank the same as Virgin Money? Virgin Money's own page refers to Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank products as part of what it offered. Whether the pension you built up sits with a company in that group depends on your years and your terms, and your report says.

Did the 2001 Act change my pension? We have not read a source that says what the Act did to pension arrangements, so we say nothing about it. Your report follows the records that apply to your years. See our Midland Bank page for the owner before 1987.

Do you contact the pension scheme for me? No. We identify who holds the pension and give you what to send. You contact them yourself, and the pension stays yours throughout.

Is the government tracing service not enough? It is the right first step, and it costs nothing. It gives a contact for a scheme name you already have. It will not tell you whether you have a pension, and with Clydesdale Bank or Yorkshire Bank the name you remember is not the name on the record today.

What if you find nothing? We say so in the report. The refund promise sits next to the order button above.

More of the City's vanished banks: Midland Bank, Halifax and HBOS, Bradford & Bingley, and the A to Z of old names.