National Savings and Investments (NS&I) has today announced that its prize fund is being cut from 4.65% to 4.40% with effect from the March draw.
While this is disappointing news for premium bond holders, this time last year the prize fund rate was just 3.00% so it’s still a decent deal when you look at historical returns.
Andrew Westhead, NS&I Retail Director, said:
“After these changes, the Premium Bonds draw in March is expected to pay out over 5.7 million tax-free prizes totalling more than £444 million to savers across the UK.”
From the March 2024 prize draw the Premium Bonds prize fund rate will be reducing by 25 basis points to 4.40%, with the odds remaining the same at 21,000 to 1. This compares to the March 2023 draw when the prize fund rate was 3.30% and the odds were 24,000 to 1.
| Current prize fund rate (from September 2023) | Current odds (from September 2023) | New prize fund rate (from March 2024) | Odds (from March 2024) |
| 4.65% tax-free | 21,000 to 1 | 4.40% tax-free | 21,000 to 1 |
Value of Premium Bonds prizes
| Value of prizes | Number and total value of prizes in January 2024 | Number and total value of prizes in March 2024 (estimate) |
| £1,000,000 | 2 | 2 |
| £100,000 | 91 | 85 |
| £50,000 | 182 | 170 |
| £25,000 | 365 | 339 |
| £10,000 | 912 | 848 |
| £5,000 | 1,821 | 1,697 |
| £1,000 | 19,020 | 17,775 |
| £500 | 57,060 | 53,325 |
| £100 | 2,363,105 | 2,130,923 |
| £50 | 2,363,105 | 2,130,923 |
| £25 | 1,037,784 | 1,435,338 |
| Total: | Total5,843,447 prizes£475,510,350 | Total5,771,425 prizes£444,399,400 |
Premium Bonds offer a minimum investment starting at just £25. Premium Bonds customers can add to their Premium Bonds holding quickly and securely, both for themselves or a child, via Pay by bank account or bank transfer, and more savings means more chances to win in the monthly prize draws.
