For the first time in history, Premium Bonds are on sale
- For the very first time, premium bonds can now be bought from post offices
- The chairman of the National Savings Committee Lord Mackintosh made the announcement on Saturday
- He estimates total revenue of £50 million in November and £150 million by March next year
Premium bonds are now available for sale in post offices across the UK. According to the chairman of the National Savings Committee Lord Mackintosh, his projected sales for the month run to the tune of £50 million at a unit price of £1. Mackintosh made the announcement on Saturday to enlighten the general public about the new form of saving, adding that the movement he represents has been urging the Treasury to introduce such a product.
Lord Mackintosh noted that while most members of the movement still prefer conventional savings schemes, it hasn’t been making much progress. The total amount invested in the National Savings had been stuck at about 6 billion.
“The good and thrifty people who have supported us in the past have done their best, but it is not enough. The country must have more savings, so we are spreading our net wider to include that large section of the public who have so far been left quite cold by our appeal for thrift for its own sake – people to whom the difference between 3½ and 4 percent did not appeal,” Mackintosh said.
Subscribers have been enticed with a chance to win £1,000 upon buying a single premium bond. But buyers must hold the bond for at least six months; those who will feature in the first draw will need to buy the bonds today and hold them until May next year. December buyers will be in the June draw and so on. Other than the semi-annual draws, participants will also stand a chance to win small prices from as little as £25.
Experts expect the bond to receive an overwhelming market response in the first few months due to the novelty and partly because there’s a higher chance of winning in the first draw than in the subsequent ones. Lord Mackintosh predicted £50 million in proceeds during the first month and a threefold increase by March 2020. He urged the general public not to overwhelm the post offices and banks who will be the initial sellers of the bonds adding that all the bond buyers stood an equal chance of winning, whether bought in November or in February next year.
