The first batch of savings bonds this year were snapped up on the first day of issuance, and some bank quotas were sold out within an hour.

　　Author: Qin Ning

　　Entering a downward interest rate cycle, many people are racing against time for investment and financial management.

On March 10, the first batch of savings bonds (certificate-type) in 2024 were officially issued. Residents were still enthusiastic about buying. Many bank quotas in Beijing were sold out in the morning. The quotas of major banks were particularly in demand and were sold out in just one hour.

　　According to the announcement of the Ministry of Finance, the first and second phases of 2024 savings bonds (certificate type) will be issued from March 10 to March 19.

Both tranches of treasury bonds are fixed-rate, fixed-maturity varieties.

Among them, the first phase has a term of 3 years, the maximum issuance amount is 15 billion yuan, and the annual coupon rate is 2.38%; the second phase has a term of 5 years, the maximum issuance amount is 15 billion yuan, and the annual coupon rate is 2.5%.

　　It is no longer new that savings bonds are hard to grab. Although interest rates continue to fall, the time deposit interest rates of large banks maintain a slight advantage. However, compared with the time deposit rates of small and medium-sized banks, they do not have an advantage. However, their safety, stability and other characteristics are still attractive to some Groups are more attractive. Some bank account managers said that middle-aged and elderly people are more inclined to buy savings bonds than young people.

Some banks were sold out on the first day of issue.

　　The Ministry of Finance announced on March 6 that the first and second tranches of 2024 savings bonds (certificate type) will be issued from March 10, 2024 to March 19, 2024.

　　Both tranches of treasury bonds are fixed-rate, fixed-term varieties, with a maximum issuance total of 30 billion yuan. Among them, the first tranche has a term of 3 years, a maximum issuance amount of 15 billion yuan, and an annual coupon rate of 2.38%; the second tranche has a term of 5 years. The maximum issuance amount is 15 billion yuan, and the annual coupon rate is 2.5%.

　　"It will be gone around 9:30. If you want to buy it, you have to queue up early to grab it." On the first day of the issuance (March 10), the reporter consulted many banks in Beijing as a customer, and many account managers said that the quota was sold out in the morning. , especially among big banks, are more in demand.

Some joint-stock banks and city commercial banks still have some remaining quota, but account managers also remind them to go to nearby outlets to purchase as soon as possible if necessary.

　　From the perspective of issuance and purchase methods, savings treasury bonds (certificate type) will be issued to individuals at face value during the issuance period through members of the 2024-2026 savings treasury bond underwriting syndicate. The issuance face value is in units of 100 yuan. A single individual purchases a single-issue savings treasury bond. (Voucher type) The amount shall not exceed 3 million yuan.

Members of the underwriting syndicate shall provide investors with the "Receipt Voucher for Savings Treasury Bonds of the People's Republic of China (Certificate Type)".

　　Among them, the underwriting syndicate members from 2024 to 2026 are 40 commercial banks, including large state-owned banks, joint-stock banks, city commercial banks, and rural commercial banks.

Taking a branch of a large state-owned bank in Beijing as an example, when consulting as a customer, the reporter learned that the issuance quota of 3-year and 5-year savings bonds at this branch was 400,000 yuan. In the morning, all four customers "bought" "Broken", the per capita investment amount was 200,000 yuan, but the remaining dozen or so people in line failed to grab it.

　　Another account manager of a joint-stock bank said that 3-year savings bonds are more popular, and the quota has been taken away in the morning. As of noon, only some 5-year varieties are left.

Many account managers said that savings bonds generally require grabbing, and customers who know about them will queue up at the branch early.

However, according to the reporter's understanding, in comparison, the quotas of city commercial banks are more relaxed. An account manager said that compared with the previous situation where the products were sold out in a few hours, the sale speed this time is slower.

　　From the perspective of quota allocation, each bank's allocation form is slightly different.

"Measures for the Administration of Savings Treasury Bonds (Certificate Type)", "Measures for the Administration of Savings Treasury Bond Issuance Quotas" and other relevant regulations require that before issuance begins, the Ministry of Finance, together with the People's Bank of China, will set the maximum issuance amount of the current savings treasury bonds (certificate type) plan as stipulated in the issuance notice. The allocation ratio of the agency sales quota is distributed to the members of the underwriting syndicate.

Members of the underwriting syndicate shall sell savings treasury bonds (certificate type) in accordance with the principle of inclusiveness, coordinate the planning of sales outlets, and reasonably allocate quotas to facilitate investors' purchases.

　　According to feedback from account managers, some banks will allocate quotas to branches, and some banks will share quotas among branches within the entire bank system, while supplies last.

What are the characteristics of savings bonds?

　　In fact, due to the characteristics of high security, stable income, flexible realization, and low investment threshold, the phenomenon of "second flash" of savings bonds is no longer new.

Many account managers said that savings bonds are especially popular among middle-aged and elderly people who pursue stable returns.

　　Savings treasury bonds (certificate type) are registered treasury bonds. The registration method adopts a real-name system. Loss can be reported, but the name cannot be changed and cannot be transferred.

After investors purchase savings treasury bonds (certificate type), they can go to the original underwriting syndicate member who purchased the treasury bonds to apply for early redemption and pledge loans.

However, early redemption will not be available on the last day of the issuance period (i.e. March 19).

　　From the perspective of interest calculation method, the savings bonds (certificate type) purchased by investors will accrue interest from the date of purchase. The principal and interest will be paid in one lump sum upon maturity, without compound interest. No interest will be accrued for overdue redemption.

From the issuance announcement date of each issue of national savings bonds (certificate type) to the issuance end date, if the central bank adjusts the benchmark interest rate of RMB deposits of financial institutions, etc., and the interest rate of the current period of savings treasury bonds (certificate type) needs to be adjusted, the issuance interest rate and the interest rate for early redemption tranches The adjustments will be notified separately.

　　It is worth noting that when investors apply for early redemption, interest will be calculated based on the actual holding time of the current treasury bonds and the corresponding interest rate grade. At the same time, investors must pay a handling fee of 1‰ of the principal for early redemption to the members of the underwriting syndicate.

　　Specifically, look at the interest accrual rules of the tranches. From the date of purchase, no interest will be paid if the two-tranche treasury bonds are held for less than half a year. Interest will be calculated at an annual interest rate of 0.35% for half a year and less than 1 year. Interest will be calculated at an annual interest rate of 0.85% for 1 year and less than 2 years. , the interest will be calculated at 1.87% for 2 years and less than 3 years; the interest for the second period of treasury bonds will be calculated at 2.32% for more than 3 years and less than 4 years, and the interest will be calculated at 2.43% for 4 years and less than 5 years.

　　This also means that unlike early withdrawal of time deposits that accrue interest based on current interest rates, investors will also face the risk of "losing money" if they hold savings bonds for less than half a year and withdraw money in advance.

However, when the holding period is greater than half a year, the interest calculation rules for deposits are more flexible than those for time deposits.

　　According to previous practice, savings bonds are usually issued from March to November every year from the 10th to the 19th, and are divided into two types: certificate type and electronic type. The two types have slight differences in the purchase method, interest payment and maturity redemption method. The specific issuance information shall be subject to the announcement on the official website of the Ministry of Finance.

Still higher than the fixed deposit interest rate of major banks

　　Entering the downward channel of interest rates, coupled with the increased fluctuations in financial management and other yields, investors are becoming more cautious in choosing various financial management channels. It can be said that they need to "compare products" and "race against time."

　　The reporter noticed that as deposit interest rates continue to fall, the current differentiation in the rush for savings bonds between large state-owned banks and small and medium-sized banks is more obvious. The reason for the tighter quota of the former is on the one hand the larger customer base, and on the other hand the demand for fixed-term loans. Deposit, listing and execution interest rates are lower.

　　In the past two years, as the interest rate center has declined, savings bond interest rates have also experienced multiple reductions.

Take the seventh and eighth installments of 2023 savings treasury bonds (certificate type) issued in November last year as an example. The seventh installment of savings treasury bonds has a term of 3 years and an annual coupon rate of 2.63%; the eighth installment of savings treasury bonds has a term of 5 year, the annual coupon rate is 2.75%.

In contrast, the yields on the latest batch of savings bonds fell by 0.25 percentage points.

　　Looking at the long term, the 3-year and 5-year coupon rates of the savings bonds (certificate type) issued from July to September 2023 are 2.85% and 2.97% respectively; the savings government bonds (certificate type) from May to June The annual coupon rates of the 3-year and 5-year bonds were 2.95% and 3.07% respectively; the annual coupon rates of the 3-year and 5-year savings bonds (certificate type) from March to April were 3% and 3.12% respectively. In November 2022, they have dropped by 5BP and 10BP respectively.

This also means that since November 2022, the annual coupon rates of 3-year and 5-year savings bonds have dropped by 67BP and 72BP respectively.

　　Looking back, major state-owned banks took the lead in launching three rounds of centralized adjustments to deposit interest rates in 2023.

Among them, the three-year and five-year time deposit interest rates have been reduced by 65BP cumulatively.

According to the latest listed interest rates and mainstream execution interest rates of major banks, the listed interest rates for 3-year and 5-year time deposits are 1.95% and 2% respectively, and the execution interest rates can rise to a maximum of around 2.35% (excluding exclusive personal pension products) , maintaining the trend of savings government bond interest rates being slightly higher than the time deposit rates of major banks.

　　However, there is a certain lag in the interest rate adjustments of small and medium-sized banks. From the perspective of interest rate levels alone, the yield on savings government bonds does not have an advantage over the time deposit interest rates of small and medium-sized banks.

Take a leading city commercial bank as an example. After the latest round of adjustments in December last year, the bank's fixed deposit interest rate for a three-year term can be raised to 2.65%, and the five-year term can be as low as 2.35%. The interest rate for large-denomination certificates of deposit can be as high as 2.7%.

In other individual rural commercial banks, rural banks and private banks, time deposits or large certificates of deposit can still be seen at about 3%.

　　Some insiders pointed out that the specific choice still depends on the investors' own needs, and multiple considerations such as return rate, product features, and own needs must be considered.

Some bank account managers said that when the amount of savings bonds is limited, other deposits and financial management products can also be considered. Especially for young people who have no special preference for savings bonds, there are actually more choices.

　　Just on February 29, the central bank issued the "Notice on Matters Concerning the Over-the-Counter Business of the Inter-bank Bond Market" (effective from May 1, 2024), further expanding the types of over-the-counter bond investments and optimizing relevant institutional arrangements to facilitate residents and other institutional investors in bond investments.

The document clarifies that investors can invest in interbank bond market bond varieties such as treasury bonds, local government bonds, financial bonds, corporate credit bonds, etc. through counter business institutions.