Sovereign Gold Bond FY21-22 Series-I issue review

Published on Saturday, May 15, 2021 by Dilip Davda

• RBI has announced its SGB scheme for the first half of FY22
• SGB FY22 Series-I has fixed a price of Rs. 4777 per one gram.
• Online applicant will be eligible for upfront discount of Rs. 50 per gram.
• Investment for long term may be considered.

For the fiscal 2021-22 (FY22), Finance Ministry has announced its plans for Sovereign Gold Bond issues that begins with Tranche I that opens on May 17, 2021 and will close on May 21, 2021. Issuance of these bonds will be done tentatively on May 25, 2021 and listings on BSE and NSE thereafter.

The issue plans announced for the first half of FY 22 is as under:

RBI has fixed the price for SGB FY22 Series-I at Rs. 4777 per one gram. Those who are applying online will get upfront discount of Rs.50 per gram and thus will have to pay Rs. 4727 per gram.

The gold bonds will be sold through Scheduled Commercial banks (except Small Finance Banks and Payment Banks), Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices, and recognised stock exchanges viz., National Stock Exchange of India Limited and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited. It is always advisable to apply for these SGB online to avail benefit of special discount for online applications.

The price of the bonds is fixed in Rupees on the basis of a simple average of the closing price of gold of 999 purities, published by the India Bullion and Jewellers Association Limited (IBJA) for the last 3 working days of the week preceding the subscription period. The issue price of the Gold Bonds will be Rs. 50 per gram less for those who subscribe online and pay through digital mode.

The bond will have an eight-year tenor, with an option to exit after the fifth year on the next interest payment dates. If held in Demat form, the bond will be tradable on exchanges. It can also be transferred to another investor who meets the criteria.

The minimum investment in the Bond is one gram, with a maximum subscription limit of four kilograms for individuals.

On the amount of the initial investment, the Bonds pay 2.50 percent (fixed rate) per year in interest. Interest will be credited semi-annually to the investor's bank account, with the final interest due along with the principal at maturity.

If one invests in a sovereign gold bonus, the government in India has exempted capital gains tax on the acquisition of gold. However, the interest earned is taxable. One can use indexing to lower the capital gain tax burden by trying to transfer (leave) the bond before maturity.

Conclusion

Those who are looking for long term rewards with some interest income may consider investment in these bonds.