LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwire) -- 12/24/12 -- Virgin Money has won the 2012 Customer Experience of the Year Award for Banking in the UK Customer Experience Awards.

The UK Customer Experience Awards recognise companies who deliver an outstanding customer experience in their field. Virgin Money beat off competition from short listed companies including Metro Bank, Nationwide, Lloyds TSB, and RBS.

Brian Brodie, Customer and Distribution Director at Virgin Money said "At Virgin Money we are building a different kind of bank. We put customers at the heart of what we do, and are absolutely focused on providing an excellent experience for our customers. Winning the Customer Experience of the Year award shows we're well on the road to getting things right."

About Virgin Money

- Following the acquisition of Northern Rock in January 2012, Virgin Money provides credit cards, mortgages, savings, pensions (including Virgin Money stakeholder pensions), investment and protection products to over four million customers

- Virgin Money's business ambition is to make "everyone better off" - this philosophy underpins our approach to business by offering good value to customers, treating employees well, making a positive contribution to society and delivering a profit to shareholders

- Virgin is the official sponsor of the London Marathon, the biggest annual fundraising event in the world. Virgin Money leads the London Marathon sponsorship with the ambition to help runners raise GBP 1/4 billion over 5 years and will use its infrastructure, online capability and financial expertise to deliver that through Virgin Money Giving