British banking major Barclays has reportedly asked thousands of charities to pay for banking services following a review.

According to a report in The Times, the bank has conveyed nearly 5,000 not-for-profit organisations including small charities to scout groups that they are no longer qualified for free services and must open a business account.

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A business account charges money for most of the services, which were earlier provided free.

What has led to this decision?

Barclays offer community accounts free of charge to not-for-profit organisations with an annual turnover of less than £100,000.

It enables these organisations to make and receive payments without paying any charges. More than 100,000 entities were said to have community accounts with the bank.

Following a review of the service, Barclays found that thousands of organisations have more than £100,000 turnover making them ineligible for community accounts.

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After the introduction of the turnover threshold in the 1990s, the bank has conducted periodical reviews to assess the eligibility of the organisations availing this community banking services.

Lloyds Banking Group also provides free banking service to charities and small groups. However, the eligibility turnover limit is £50,000.

The report added that the Barclays’ decision has aggrieved the customers as business account carries charges.

Last month, Barclays announced pre-tax profits of £1.46bn ($1.88bn) for the third quarter of 2018, an increase of 32% over the corresponding period of last year. Its net profit was £1bn, significantly beating analyst forecasts.