Govt to launch sovereign gold bond scheme

To be sold by banks, post offices

The government will launch the next tranche of sovereign gold bond (SGB) scheme, the second in 2017-18, on October 9 to cash in on festive fever.

The bonds will be sold through banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges namely the NSE and BSE, the finance ministry said.

The sovereign gold bond scheme was launched in November 2015 with an objective to reduce the demand for physical gold and shift a part of the domestic savings, used for purchase of gold, into financial savings.

“Government of India, in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India, has decided to issue Sovereign Gold Bonds 2017 -18 - Series-III. Applications for the bond will be accepted from October 09, 2017 to December 27, 2017,” it said.

The Bonds will be issued on the succeeding Monday after each subscription period, it said.

Under the scheme, the bonds are denominated in units of one gram of gold and multiples thereof. Minimum investment in the bonds is one gram with a maximum limit of subscription of 500 grams per person per fiscal year.

The maximum limit of subscribed would be 4 kg for individual and HUF and 20 kg for trusts and similar entities per fiscal (April-March) notified by the government from time to time, it said.

The annual ceiling will include bonds subscribed under different tranches during initial issuance by the government and those purchase from the secondary market, it said.

The government has so far issued nine tranches of SGBs since its launch. To promote digital payment, it said, the issue price of the gold bonds will be Rs 50 per gram less for those who subscribe online and pay through digital mode.

Investors in these bonds have been provided with the option of holding them in physical or dematerialised form.