July 2023’s Government Bonds: 2.99% P.A. August 2023 SSB, 5-year SGS Bond and 3 T-Bills
August 2023’s Singapore Savings Bond (SSB) sees an average return of 2.99% p.a. for its 10-year period. Rates are almost completely flat and first-year interest is already 2.97%, so you get nearly 3% p.a. regardless of how long you hold the bond for. This is an uptick in rates from last month’s July 2023 SSB.
Also, there are 3 T-Bills whose auction dates fall on this month, including one of only 4 1-year t-bills for the year of 2023.
August 2023 SSB
| Year from issue date | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interest % | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 3.02 | 3.04 | 3.04 |
| Average return per year %* | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.98 | 2.98 | 2.99 |
The rates of August 2023 SSB looks similar to that in May 2023 which was nearly oversubscribed. SSbs haven’t been oversubscribed in a while, with April 2023’s SSB being the last time this happened. Given the similar rates, August’s SSB may prove popular too with individuals looking for a low-risk way to grow their funds.
Past SSB Rates
Past SSBs
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | Year 6 | Year 7 | Year 8 | Year 9 | Year 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2023 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 | 2.81 |
| July 2023 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.76 | 2.78 | 2.81 | 2.82 |
| August 2023 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.97 | 2.98 | 2.98 | 2.99 |
| September 2023 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.01 | 3.02 | 3.04 | 3.06 |
| October 2023 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.06 | 3.09 | 3.13 | 3.16 |
| November 2023 | 3.21 | 3.21 | 3.21 | 3.21 | 3.21 | 3.21 | 3.22 | 3.25 | 3.29 | 3.32 |
| December 2023 | 3.30 | 3.30 | 3.30 | 3.30 | 3.30 | 3.30 | 3.31 | 3.34 | 3.37 | 3.40 |
| January 2024 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.02 | 3.05 | 3.07 |
| February 2024 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.72 | 2.75 | 2.78 | 2.81 |
| March 2024 | 2.74 | 2.74 | 2.74 | 2.74 | 2.74 | 2.74 | 2.75 | 2.79 | 2.84 | 2.88 |
| April 2024 | 2.95 | 2.95 | 2.95 | 2.95 | 2.95 | 2.95 | 2.96 | 2.99 | 3.02 | 3.04 |
| May 2024 | 2.99 | 2.99 | 2.99 | 2.99 | 2.99 | 2.99 | 3.00 | 3.02 | 3.04 | 3.06 |
| June 2024 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.27 | 3.29 | 3.31 | 3.33 |
| July 2024 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.26 | 3.28 | 3.29 | 3.30 |
3 t-bills up for subscription this month, and one SGS bond
For the month of July 2023, there are 3 t-bills to subscribe. 2 of them are the usual 6-month variants, while one is a rare 1-year t-bill. There is also a 5-year SGS bond to
| Type | Announcement Date | Auction Date | Tenure |
| T-bill | 28th June 2023 | 6th July 2023 | 6-month |
| T-bill | 13th July 2023 | 20th July 2023 | 6-month |
| T-bill | 20th July 2023 | 27th July 2023 | 1-year |
| SGS Bond | 20th July 2023 | 27th July 2023 | 5-year |
The latest 6-month t-bill had a pretty high cut-off yield of 3.89% p.a. 6-month t-bills will likely continue to be a popular way to set aside savings for a short term. For those who wish to set aside their funds for a longer time, they may consider subscribing the 1-year t-bill which is the 3rd of 4 1-year t-bills this year.
Finally, there is also a 5-year SGS bond to subscribe later this month. It should be slightly higher in rates than this month’s SSB, although I wonder whether losing liquidity for a little more returns is worth it.
Remember, you can easily redeem your SSB any month you wish with no capital loss, and returns are given to you on a pro-rated basis.
Conversely, SGS bonds and t-bills have to be sold in the open market. The trading volume tends to be low so you might have trouble selling your bond without capital loss. Even at a discount, it may not be an easy thing to find a buyer for your bond.
Seth Wee was a licensed financial adviser representative from 2009 to 2025, with over 16 years of experience in Singapore’s financial advisory industry.
He started Sethisfy.com in 2019 to share practical insights on credit cards, banking products, and miles strategies, helping readers identify financial products that deliver the best value. Seth has been featured in CNA, Channel 8, Today, and a host of other publications. In 2025, he was also part of a panel at CPF’s Ready For Life festival.
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