Singapore Savings Bonds have drawn S$810 million after first six offerings: MAS

SINGAPORE Savings Bonds have drawn 32,000 investors and S$810 million of their money after the first six offerings of the product, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced on Wednesday.

About 46 per cent of the bondholders are aged 49 years and above. Investors aged 18 to 30 years represent 13 per cent of bondholders.

Almost half, or 49 per cent, of all applications were for amounts of S$10,000 and below, compared to 25 per cent for amounts of S$40,000 to the maximum of S$50,000.

MAS added that 19 per cent of bondholders had recently opened accounts with the Central Depository, suggesting a significant presence of first-time investors among the bondholders.

"These are encouraging developments as Savings Bonds are intended to be a safe, flexible and long-term instrument that would be suitable for new investors," MAS said in a report. "As they become more familiar with investing, these first-time investors could consider other instruments for long-term investment, including equities, bonds, exchange traded funds (ETFs) and unit trusts."

The Saving Bonds were first offered in September 2015 for October issuance. The non-tradable 10-year bonds may be redeemed by the bondholder every month, and the yield at redemption will match the average yield of a Singapore government bond that was issued in the month before issuance and that matures at the time of redemption.