Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB): Schemes, Returns, Rate of Interest

Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs) are government securities issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on behalf of the Government of India. It was launched in November 2015, under the Gold Monetisation Scheme. The scheme was introduced to provide people an alternative option to holding physical gold. Under this, the issues are made open for subscription in tranches by RBI.

Features of Sovereign Gold Bond Schemes

• Bonds are secured against physical gold holdings of the government
• The bonds will be available both in demat and paper form
• SGBs can be used as collateral for loans. This bond is as liquid as physical gold and could be exchanged for money at the time of financial need.
• The quantity of gold for which the investor pays is protected, since he receives the ongoing market price at the time of redemption/ premature redemption.
• Tenor of the Bond is available for a period of 8 years with exit option after the 5th year
• Sovereign gold bonds will be redeemed for cash at the end of the investment tenure and the redemption will take place at the prevailing gold price
• SGBs are free from issues like making charges and purity which is there in the case of gold jewellery.
• The bonds are held in the books of the RBI or in demat form thus, eliminating risk of loss of scrip etc.

Eligibility Criteria: Who can invest in the SGBs?

All Indian residents as defined under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 are eligible to invest in Sovereign Gold Bonds. Eligible investors include:

• Individuals (Single or joint holding)
• HUFs
• Trusts
• Universities
• Charitable institutions

Note: Minors can also apply for this scheme but for this, parents or legal guardians will have to submit the application on their behalf.

How much one can invest in Sovereign Gold Bond?

The minimum one can invest is 1 gram of gold and the maximum limit varies as per the categories given below. The maximum investment limit per fiscal (April- March) is as follows:

• Individuals – 4 Kg of gold (In case of joint holding, the limit applies to the first applicant)
• Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) – 4 Kg of gold
• Trusts and similar entities – 20 kg of gold

What is the rate of interest applicable on SGBs?

One can earn interest on the amount of initial investment at the rate of 2.50% (fixed rate) p.a. The interest will be credited semi-annually to the bank account of the investor and the last interest will be payable on maturity along with the principal.

How to invest in Sovereign Gold Bond?

• Interested investors can either apply online or offline by either downloading the application(KYC) form from the RBI’s website or get it from authorised branches.
• If a customer opts online mode and makes the payment through the website of the listed commercial banks, then the issue price of the gold bonds will be Rs.50/gram less than the nominal value for those investors.
• If the customer meets the eligibility criteria,produces a valid identification document and submit the application money on time, S/he will receive the allotment.
• The customers will be issued certificate of holding on the date of issuance  which can either be collected from the bank you have bought SGBs from or obtained directly from RBI on email
• Investors will be given one unique investor ID which will be used for all the subsequent investments in the scheme.

Note: The price of gold will be published on the RBI website two days before the issue opens.

Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme 2019-2020 Issuance

The Government of India, in consultation with RBI, has opened the series for the year 2020

Sr.No.	Tranche	Period of Subscription	Date of Issuance	Interest per annum	Issue price per gram
1	2019-20 Series IX	February 03-07, 2020	February 11, 2020	2.50%	Rs.4,070 Rs.4,020(For online applications)
2	2019-20 Series X	March 02-06,2020	March 11,2020	2.50%	Rs.4,070 Rs.4,020(For online applications)

What will I get on redemption? 

On maturity, the redemption proceeds will be equivalent to the prevailing market value of gold (per gram) originally invested. The selling price of Sovereign gold bond will be decided on the basis of closing price of 999 gold purity of the last 3 business days of the week from the date of repayment, published by the Indian Bullion and Jewelers Association Limited.

How can I redeem the Sovereign Gold Scheme?

The tenor of the SGBs is 8 years. However, one can also encash/ redeem the bond after 5th year from the date of issue on coupon payment dates.

On maturity: The investor will be advised one month before maturity. On maturity, the gold bonds will be redeemed in Indian rupees based on the selling price published by the Indian Bullion and Jewelers Association Limited. The interest and redemption proceeds will be credited to your bank account.

Premature redemption: Investors need to approach the concerned bank, or issuing authority 30 days before the coupon payment date. The request for premature redemption will only be entertained if the investor approaches the concerned bank at least one day before the coupon payment date.

Important Aspects

There are certain aspects which investors should know about Sovereign Gold bonds:

• For holding securities in dematerialized form, quoting of PAN in the application form is mandatory
• Nomination facility is available to invest in Sovereign government bonds
• TDS is not applicable on SGBs. However, it is the responsibility of the bond holder to comply with the tax laws.

Sovereign Gold Bonds as Collateral for Loans

Sovereign Gold Bonds are eligible to be used as collateral for loans from banks, financial institutions and non-banking financial companies (NBFC). The loan to value ratio will be the same as applicable to ordinary gold loans prescribed by RBI from time to time. However, granting loan against SGBs would be subject to the decision.

Tax Implication on SGBs

The interest on Sovereign Gold Bonds is taxable as per the provision of Income Tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961). On redemption, the capital gains tax to an individual has been exempted. The indexation benefits will be provided to long term capital gains arising to any person on transfer of bond.

Sovereign Gold Bond or Physical Gold Or Gold ETF- Which one should I go for?

Here is the comparison through which potential investor can decide:

Particulars	Sovereign Gold Bonds	Physical Gold	Gold ETF
Returns	More than actual return on physical gold	Lower than actual return on gold	Lower than actual return on gold
Sovereign Guarantee	Yes	NA	No
Interest on the Investment	Yes	No	No as no dividend option is provided on Gold ETF
Annual fund management fees	No	No	Yes
Exit/ redemption option	Only from 5th year	Any time exit	Any time exit
Tradability	Tradable on exchange, redemption from 5th year onwards	Conditional	Tradable on exchange
Liquidity	Limited	Highly liquid	Highly liquid
Storage charges	No	Yes	No
Quality check required	No	Yes	No
Collateral against loan	Yes	Yes	No
Purity of gold	High as it is in electronic/paper form	Purity of gold always remains a question	High as it is in electronic form

FAQs

Q1. Who are the authorised agencies selling Sovereign Gold bond schemes?

Sovereign Gold Bonds are sold through Nationalised Banks, Scheduled Private banks, Scheduled Foreign Banks, designated Post Offices and Stock Holding Corporation of India Ltd. and the authorised stock exchanges either directly or through their agents.

Q2. How can I contact the RBI if I have any query regarding sovereign gold bond?

Investors can mail their queries to them at sbg@rbi.org.in

Q3. Are there any risks in investing in these bonds?

There is a risk of capital loss if the market price of gold declines. Even in this scenario, the investor doesn’t lose in terms of the units of gold which he has paid for. 

Q4. What happens in case of death of the investor?

In such a scenario, the listed nominee/nominees may approach the respective receiving office with their claim and as per the criteria laid down in Government Securities Act, 2006, s/he will get the claim amount.

Q5. Can I transfer the bonds? 

The Sovereign Gold bond can be gifted/transferable to anybody who fulfills the eligibility criteria before maturity.

Q6. How is the rate of bonds decided?

The rate of the bond will be set in Indian Rupees on the basis of the simple average of closing price of gold (999 pure) published by the India Bullion and Jewellers Association Limited for the last 3 working days of the week preceding the subscription period.