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RBI BONDS

The Floating Rate Savings Bonds 2020 (Taxable) are debt instruments issued by the government of India. The bond provides periodic interest at floating rate every 6 months and is redeemable after 7 years. Minimum amount of Investment is just Rs 1000 with no upper limit.

RBI's floating rate savings bonds: Why should investors invest in them?

As RBI has now allowed retail investors to apply for floating rate savings bonds via its Retail Direct Portal, there is a recent addition to the number of fixed income instruments one can opt for. For the uninitiated, subscription to these bonds is done in the form of cash (up to ₹20,000 only).

The bonds may be held by a person resident in India in their individual capacity or joint basis or on any or survivor basis or on behalf of a minor as father/ mother or legal guardian. Applications for these bonds are received in the designated branches of State Bank of India, IDBI Bank, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank.

RBI BONDS - FEATURES

ELIGIBILITY

The Bonds are open to investment by individuals (including Joint Holdings)

NOTE : NRIs are not eligible for making investments in these Bonds.

CHARACTERISTICS

• Minimum amount of investment is ₹ 1000/- and in multiples thereof.
• A certificate of holding will be issued to the customer as proof of subscription.
• The Bonds will be issued only in the electronic form called Bond Ledger Account (BLA).
• There is no upper limit for investment in the Bonds.
• Contribution to the bonds can be made in cash (upto ₹20,000/- only)/ drafts/ cheques.

TAX TREATMENT

Interest received will be taxable under the Income-tax Act, 1961 as amended from time to time and as applicable according to the relevant tax status of the Bond holder.

INTEREST RATE

The interest on the bonds is payable semi-annually on 1st Jan and 1st July every year. The interest rate of the bond, would be re-set half yearly in sync with the coupon payment date. It is linked with prevailing National Saving Certificate (NSC) rate with a spread of (+) 35 bps over the respective NSC rate. All subsequent coupon reset would be based on the fixation of rate of interest on NSC on Jan 01 and July 01 following the above methodology.

REPAYMENT/ TENURE

The Bonds shall be repayable on the expiration of 7 (Seven) years from the date of issue. Premature redemption shall be allowed for specified categories of senior citizens only.

CLOSURE

• For customers in the age bracket between 60 to 70 years, the lock in period is 6 years.
• For customers in the age bracket between 70 to 80 years, the lock in period is 5 years.
• For customers in the age bracket of 80 years and above, the lock in period is 4 years.

TRANSFERABILITY AND TRADABILITY

• The Bonds in the form of Bond Ledger Account shall not be transferable except transfer to a nominee(s)/legal heir in case of death of the holder of the bonds.
• The Bonds shall not be tradable in the secondary market and shall not be eligible as collateral for loans from banks, Financial Institutions and Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) etc.
• A sole holder or a sole surviving holder of a Bond, being an individual, can make a nomination.

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