RBI Floating Rate Savings Bond interest rate announced for January to June 2025; check latest details and other features

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced the latest interest rate for RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds on Wednesday for January to June 2025.

The RBI Floating Rate Savings Bond, 2020 (Taxable) will be offered at 8.05 per cent interest rates from January to June 2025. The interest rate of the RBI Floating Rate Savings Bond is related to the National Savings Certificate (NSC) interest rate. NSC is a small savings scheme by the government of India. Currently, the interest rate of RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds is 0.35% higher than the NSC interest rate.

“The coupon/interest rate of the bond would be reset half yearly, starting with January 01, 2021 and the coupon/interest rate will be set at a spread of (+) 35 bps over the prevailing National Savings Certificate (NSC) rate,” RBI said in a release on Wednesday.

The RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds, 2020 (Taxable) is a debt instrument provided by the Government of India at a floating rate interest rate every six months.

Features of RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds

1. Eligibility: Individuals, including joint holdings and Hindu Undivided families, can apply for these bonds. However, NRIs cannot invest in these bonds
2. Issuance: The minimum amount at which the bond will be issued is ₹1,000, and its multiples thereafter. These bonds are issued at par in demat form only.

3. Tenure: These bonds have a lock-in period of seven years. Investors do not have pre-mature withdrawal option. However, senior citizens can withdraw by paying a penalty after the lock-in period. The lock-in period for citizens in the age group of 60 to 70 is six years, while for citizens from 70 to 80 years, the lock-in period is five years. The lock-in period for people above 80 is four years.

4. Interest payments: The interest is paid twice a year, on January 1 and July 1. Investors should note that interest earned from RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds is subject to tax deductions if the annual interest exceeds ₹10,000.