NS&I Investment Bond

ColdIron

londonlydia wrote: »

Am I missing something? Where is the date they will be released?

This bit maybe?

Later this month, we’ll be launching a new online Bond for investors aged 16 and over, as announced by the Chancellor in his 2016 Autumn Statement and confirmed in the March 2017 Budget announcement.

G6JPG

veryintrigued wrote: »

Well what a damp squib.

Here's the link for when they'll be on offer later this month.

https://www.nsandi.com/investment-guaranteed-growth-bonds

2.2%, max. £3k, and "You can only invest and manage the Bond online at nsandi.com". Not impressed.

And when I look at that link in my browser, I see no mention of a date - nor any link. (Just mostly a narrow strip of text down the right side.)

I don't think NS&I should be doing online-only products - nor should they be issuing web pages that need specific browsers to work; if they don't work in my Firefox 26, they almost certainly won't be accessible to, for example, the visually impaired who use speech or Braille to read the web.

veryintrigued

G6JPG wrote: »

2.2%, max. £3k

For those who have exhausted other bank accounts or those who want a guaranteed half decent (in today's climate) it might be a little more impressive.

G6JPG wrote: »

And when I look at that link in my browser, I see no mention of a date - nor any link.

See above - at least two forumites have stated it'll be later this month.

G6JPG wrote: »

I don't think NS&I should be doing online-only products

Can i ask why?

Lots of other providers do it such they can offer better rates?

bowlhead99

G6JPG wrote: »

2.2%, max. £3k, and "You can only invest and manage the Bond online at nsandi.com". Not impressed.

It's not a bad rate. More than 3x the current twelve month Libor. On the MSE sidebar you can see "Cheapest-EVER loans at 2.8%". So, if the government offered you, say, 3% on £10k they would get crucified by borrowers stoozing cash and the winners would be people who were already wealthy or had great credit.

And when I look at that link in my browser, I see no mention of a date - nor any link. (Just mostly a narrow strip of text down the right side.)

In my browser it says

Later this month, we’ll be launching a new online Bond for investors aged 16 and over, as announced by the Chancellor in his 2016 Autumn Statement and confirmed in the March 2017 Budget announcement.

When does the Bond go on sale?

• April 2017
• Available for 12 months
• You can only invest and manage the Bond online at nsandi.com

G6JPG wrote: »

I don't think NS&I should be doing online-only products

Most of us are online these days. Probably a decade and a half ago I had a NS&I online-only ISA. It was one of the better rates around, because it's cheaper to offer online products than offline ones. A bit of a pain in the a$$ when I had moved house twice and didn't remember my login credentials, but thems the breaks.

Per Office of National Statistics release about a year ago, 88% of UK adults had recently (in last 3 months) used the internet, although that only included about a third of women over 75 (albeit they were the fastest-growing group of internet users with almost 3x as many last year as five years prior). The internet is the way things happen these days, it's how you're here

- nor should they be issuing web pages that need specific browsers to work; if they don't work in my Firefox 26, they almost certainly won't be accessible to, for example, the visually impaired who use speech or Braille to read the web.

What if those visually impaired keep their specialist software and browsing tools up to date? Your Firefox 26 is a browser released in 2013. Software develops quickly and updates to the main browsers are free. I'm typing this from Firefox 52. Firefox 53 is less than two weeks away.

Seems fine on Chrome and Edge and Internet Explorer too.

ColdIron

When Tesco guaranteed their current account for 2 years they were flooded, this is 3 years. You've got a year to decide whether to open one and as you can put cash in any time I can't think of much downside in opening one for £100 to keep your options open, 2.2% might look attractive further down the line

G6JPG

bowlhead99 wrote: »

It's not a bad rate. More than 3x the current twelve month Libor. On the MSE sidebar you can see "Cheapest-EVER loans at 2.8%". So, if the government offered you, say, 3% on £10k they would get crucified by borrowers stoozing cash and the winners would be people who were already wealthy or had great credit.

Agreed, the rate isn't bad; just the limit is low. Probably for the reason you give.

In my browser it says Most of us are online these days. Probably a decade and a half ago I had a NS&I online-only ISA. It was one of the better rates around, because it's cheaper to offer online products than offline ones. A bit of a pain in the a$$ when I had moved house twice and didn't remember my login credentials, but thems the breaks.

(Unfortunately this webform isn't quoting your quotes.) Yes, it says "later this month" and so on in my browser too, but not an actual date.

Per Office of National Statistics release about a year ago, 88% of UK adults had recently (in last 3 months) used the internet, although that only included about a third of women over 75 (albeit they were the fastest-growing group of internet users with almost 3x as many last year as five years prior). The internet is the way things happen these days, it's how you're here

"had used the internet in the last 3 months" is the sort of twisted statistic that the DAB radio pushers use ("have a DAB radio" and the like). NS&I are a form of public service, and I think their products should be available for the (well over) 12% who don't realistically have online access, especially for things like this where you should be very sure what you're doing before getting involved; also, assuming from the limit that it's aimed at a certain demographic, I think that demographic is likely to have a higher proportion not online than the general public.

What if those visually impaired keep their specialist software and browsing tools up to date? Your Firefox 26 is a browser released in 2013. Software develops quickly and updates to the main browsers are free. I'm typing this from Firefox 52. Firefox 53 is less than two weeks away.

Seems fine on Chrome and Edge and Internet Explorer too.

(I think 52 is the last one for XP.) For something like this - just an information page, at the moment - I see absolutely no reason why it needs to contain anything that wouldn't work on Firefox 2, or even Netscape for that matter. Perhaps, when it gets to the point of doing the signup pages where modern security is needed to protect your financial details, but not for an information page: what does it need to contain other than text (and the odd picture perhaps)? [Not that they're anywhere near the only ones, nor the worst offenders.]

Mr_K

They should rename it Guaranteed Loss Bond, inflation is higher than the rate being offered.

AndyPK

What's with the moaners !

Even bos is dropping to 2%

Mr_K

Fixing to anything less than inflation when rates are rock bottom seems a loser to me. True variable accounts are worse, but at least you've then got flexibility to move money if something better comes along and rates rise. Should have made it 3% at least and allowed £10k in if he was serious.

bowlhead99

Mr_K wrote: »

Should have made it 3% at least and allowed £10k in if he was serious.

As I mentioned a few posts above, the adverts in the sidebar already have personal loans at below 3%.

The government would look stupid if they borrowed £10,000 at 3% from members of the public who had in turn just gone and borrowed £10,000 at 2.8% from Sainsbury or TSB to pocket a free £20 each year.

That would not be "welcome help for desperate savers" it would be "free money to the wealthy or creditworthy" and certain people on these forums would be up in arms that the government was simply "giving another bung to their fatcat mates" by offering a rate of return well in excess of market rates on a large amount of money.