The effective interest rate for August 2019 Singapore Savings Bonds (GX19080E) is 2.01% if you held it for 10 years. The interest rate is the lowest and the worst for the past 12 months. The minimum amount you can purchase for Singapore Savings Bonds is S$500 which I am likely to do so this month since the interest rate is super pathetic. This is my monthly routine of allocating a portion of my monthly salary into safe haven as the Singapore Savings Bonds acts as a form of emergency fund when the need arises.
If you didn’t know yet, SRS applications for Savings Bonds open from March and individual limit has doubled to $200,000. I personally felt that the introduction of SRS application for Savings Bonds is an excellent initiative as the SRS currently earns a petite interest rate of 0.05% per annum. In March, I have used partial of my SRS funds to purchase the Singapore Savings Bonds for the higher interest.
DBS Multiplier Account + Singapore Savings Bonds
If you hold a DBS Multiplier Account, you can perhaps try the hack I previously wrote about to achieve a higher interest rate payout. (Read more: Earn More Interest With DBS Multiplier Account + Singapore Savings Bonds).
Singapore Savings Bonds versus Fixed Deposits
The interest rate of Singapore Savings Bond is also higher than most fixed deposits that banks can offer for 12 months. (Read more: CIMB Fixed Deposit Promotion Makes Your Money Work, Not You!)
I hope the above is still true because CIMB offers a fixed deposit interest rate of 1.85% p.a. if you do a place of S$10,000 for 12 months online. I certainly do not hope the interest rate for Singapore Savings Bonds fall lower than that!
Tracking Singapore Savings Bonds via StocksCafe
My favorite website, StocksCafe has introduced a new feature to allow adding of Singapore Savings Bonds into your portfolio. If you didn’t know, I signed up as a Friend of StocksCafe as my most favorite feature of StocksCafe is the automated tracking of dividends payout.
I have renewed my subscription with StocksCafe and this is the second year that I continue to use StocksCafe to track my dividends.
Tracking Singapore Savings Bonds via My Savings Bonds Portal
MAS has launched My Savings Bonds Portal where you can track your Singapore Savings Bonds purchases separately from your stock purchases. I have done up a simple guide here. (Read more: Guide to My Savings Bonds Portal)