Nationwide Building Society has made a bold move by acquiring Virgin Money in a £2.9bn deal to challenge the dominance of Britain’s largest banks. This acquisition will propel Nationwide into business banking and increase its share of the mortgage and savings market. The combined group will have assets of about £366bn, becoming the UK's second-largest provider of mortgages and savings. The acquisition price represents a 38% premium to Virgin Money’s closing share price on March 6. Virgin Money's CEO expressed excitement about the opportunity to build on strategic and operational progress. David Duffy, the current CEO of Virgin Money, will retire and be replaced by Nationwide’s finance chief Chris Rhodes. Nationwide extended its commitment to keep branches open until at least the start of 2028. Limited workforce changes are expected, with no material changes to Virgin Money’s staff count in the first year after completion.