A retiree surnamed Ou recently experienced what she called the "most exaggerated" savings bond purchase process in history.

At 8:30 AM on April 10, Ou was ready on her mobile banking app to click "buy," but the screen froze. After waiting two minutes and refreshing, she finally entered the purchase page, only to see a message: "Insufficient available quota. Confirm purchase with maximum available amount?" After confirming and entering the verification code, the system then showed "no channel bond quota available." She quickly exited and switched to another commercial bank, but both the 5-year and 3-year bonds were already sold out—the quota had been snapped up instantly.

Not giving up, she turned to Bank of Beijing, which started sales at 9:00 AM. She stared at the screen until exactly 9:00, frantically tapping "5-year bond," but was too late—the interface immediately showed "sold out." She hurriedly placed an order for the 3-year bond, but right after entering the verification code and confirming successfully, a refresh revealed that even the 3-year bonds were gone.

Ou, who has been purchasing savings bonds for over a decade, said this was the first time she encountered such frenzied demand.

In early April, the Ministry of Finance announced the issuance of the first and second series of electronic savings bonds for 2026, with the sales period running from April 10 to April 19.

Interviews revealed that many investors shared Ou's sentiment, describing the experience as the "most absurd and frantic" ever: bonds sold out within seconds on mobile banking apps, quotas vanishing instantly, and some investors failing to secure bonds despite timely efforts, forcing them to turn to physical bank counters.

"First Come, First Served"

According to the Ministry of Finance announcement, both the first and second series of electronic bonds feature fixed interest rates and fixed terms. The first series has a 3-year term with an annual coupon rate of 1.63% and a maximum issuance of 27 billion yuan. The second series has a 5-year term with an annual coupon rate of 1.70% and a maximum issuance of 33 billion yuan. Both series accrue interest starting April 10, 2026, pay interest annually on April 10, and repay principal with final interest on April 10, 2029, and April 10, 2031, respectively.

Ou prefers electronic savings bonds over certificate savings bonds because the former pay interest annually. She ultimately purchased 100,000 yuan worth of 3-year electronic bonds, earning 1,630 yuan in interest per year. As someone nearing retirement, she values the security of principal and interest. Without better alternatives, she finds the interest rate acceptable, though the main issue is the extreme difficulty in securing bonds, far more challenging than the certificate bonds issued in March.

In March, the Ministry of Finance announced the issuance of the first and second series of certificate savings bonds for 2026, available from March 10 to March 19. The first series had a 3-year term with a 1.63% annual rate, and the second series had a 5-year term with a 1.70% annual rate. Interest for these bonds accrues from the purchase date, with principal and interest repaid at maturity without compound interest, and no additional interest for overdue redemption.

Unlike electronic bonds, certificate bonds require purchase at bank counters. On March 10, Ou leisurely visited a bank branch to fill out forms and buy certificate bonds, not concerned about quota scarcity since supply was ample. However, the electronic bond sale in April was a stark contrast.

Compared to Ou, Xiaowen, a white-collar worker in Guangzhou, had her 5-year electronic bonds mature on April 10, with principal and interest credited on time. Seeking to reinvest, she decided to buy more bonds. On April 10, she cleared all background apps on her phone around 8:20 AM and started purchasing at 8:30 AM, completing the transaction in 15 seconds. After ordering, she noticed the 5-year bonds were exceptionally popular, selling out in under a minute.

Both Ou and Xiaowen were relatively fortunate. Many investors repeatedly tried to purchase via mobile apps but failed, finding quotas zeroed out within minutes, forcing them to visit bank counters. An investor from Foshan reported successfully buying 5-year electronic bonds at a counter.

The list of banks underwriting these electronic bonds includes large state-owned banks, joint-stock commercial banks, and some city and rural commercial banks. On April 13, inquiries with several commercial banks in Guangdong, including local city and rural commercial banks, revealed that counters had no quota left since sales began on April 10.

Bank staff also noted that during the first certificate bond sales on March 10, quotas at many large state-owned bank branches were exhausted on the first day, with some joint-stock banks having limited quotas available the next day, which were quickly snapped up.

Xiaowen recalled that five years ago, her 5-year bonds had an annual coupon rate of 3.97%. At that time, bond quotas were far less tight, with many banks still having availability the day after sales began.

In May 2021, electronic savings bonds became available for purchase via mobile banking, allowing investors to buy bonds anytime, anywhere. Xiaowen remembered her first mobile purchase; quotas sold out on the first day, with smaller banks exhausting quotas in two to three minutes and large state-owned banks selling out within half a day.

Xiaowen remarked that buying bonds now truly reflects a "first come, first served" era, requiring preparation half an hour in advance for a few critical seconds. She doesn’t find it troublesome and plans to continue buying bonds with spare cash in the future.

"Anchor Asset"

Investors interviewed stated that in the current low-interest-rate environment, low-risk investment options are scarce. Large state-owned banks typically offer 1.3% to 1.5% for 3-year and 5-year time deposits. This year’s electronic bonds offer rates 30 to 40 basis points higher than comparable time deposits, with annual interest payments providing greater flexibility compared to lump-sum payments at maturity for time deposits or large certificates of deposit.

They added that amid ongoing geopolitical conflicts and Middle East tensions since March, gold prices have fluctuated sharply, and stock markets have faced adjustments, making most assets feel "unsafe." In contrast, low-risk bonds are more appealing.

Wang Pengbo, chief financial industry analyst at Boint Consulting, explained that although savings bond rates are not significantly higher than some small and medium bank time deposits, savings bonds are issued by the Ministry of Finance with state credit backing, offering the highest security for principal and interest repayment. Overall, savings bonds still hold prominent advantages in allocation value.

Wang further noted that against a backdrop of increasing risk incidents at small and medium financial institutions and heightened volatility in wealth management product net values, public demand for capital-protected assets has risen. Additionally, bond interest income is exempt from personal income tax, making after-tax returns better than most ordinary time deposits. Thus, even without standout rate advantages, savings bonds sell out quickly during online issuance.

Data also show that in recent years, households have strong savings preferences, favoring long-term time deposits to lock in returns and avoid interest rate decline risks. According to central bank statistics, from 2023 to 2025, household deposits grew significantly, with a strengthening trend toward term deposits. For example, in 2023, household deposits increased by 16.67 trillion yuan, with term deposits accounting for about 71.4% of household deposits. In 2024, household deposits rose by 14.26 trillion yuan, with term deposits making up 72.5%. In 2025, household deposits grew by 14.64 trillion yuan, with term deposits rising to 73.3%.

Regarding the phenomenon that 5-year bonds are more popular than 3-year bonds, Wang explained the core logic: 5-year bonds offer more competitive coupon rates, and during an interest rate decline cycle, investors prefer longer-term products to lock in relatively higher returns. With strong market expectations for future rate cuts, extending investment duration helps reduce reinvestment risk effectively.

For individual investors, Wang suggested treating savings bonds as anchor assets in their portfolios, prioritizing principal safety and stable returns. Remaining funds can be allocated to liquid, low-volatility products like money market funds or short-term bond funds based on risk tolerance, avoiding non-standard assets or overly long-term closed-end products in pursuit of high returns.