Update on my plan to save for income. Money I forgot I had. DBS SavvyEndowment11 and 3.92% p.a. guaranteed.

This is a quick update on my plan to save for income published in a blog at the beginning of April.

Back then, I said that I should be able to set aside $10,000 to apply for Singapore Savings Bond this month.

However, I have increased that figure to $22,000.

This is because a 5 months fixed deposit placed with DBS matured and I forgot I had it.

So, with more money at my disposal, I have decided to apply for $22,000 instead of $10,000.

Why $22,000?

If I should be successful in getting a full allotment, together with the $16,000 in Singapore Savings Bonds allotted in March, I would have hit $38,000.

$38,000 is the amount I had planned on setting aside for voluntary contribution to my CPF account in January 2024.

See:
CPF or SSB? No brainer?

I also made a non-competitive bid for the T-bill  auction closing on 25 April with $15,000 instead of $5,000.

Apparently, I had mistakenly thought that I had a T-bill maturing on 24 April when it matured on 18 April.

So, instead of completing soon, my T-bill ladder is actually complete.

See:
Ladder completing soon.

Finally, with some excess cash on hand, I decided to put some money in an endowment plan suggested by DBS Digibank.

This is a 2 years endowment plan that pays a guaranteed 3.92% per annum.

This is almost as good as the CPF Special Account's 4% per annum.

Endowment plans are really savings plans with a tiny life insurance component thrown in.

I just think of this as a pseudo top up to my CPF Special Account which I am not allowed to do anymore, of course.

The product is "SavvyEndowment11" and it is available to anyone with a DBS Digibank account.

Minimum amount required is $5,000.

The application process is very easy and fast.

This is not an advertorial but here is the link for anyone who might be interested in saving money: 

DBS SavvyEndowment11.

"A spokesperson for Hong Leong Finance said that rates for fixed deposits have generally dropped slightly in the past two months. 

"Singapore Overnight Rate Average (SORA) remains relatively high and inflationary risk will take time to ease. 

"At the back of an uncertain economic outlook, rates are likely to soften later in the year. 

"A Maybank spokesperson highlighted the impact of US Federal Reserve interest rate hikes on interest rates in Singapore. 

"As Singapore dollar interest rates have a positive correlation to the US dollar, we can expect that if inflationary pressures recede, interest rates should soften if there is a recession risk."
Source: CNA.

So, for anyone with a fixed income component in their investment portfolio, it is probably not a bad idea to lock in higher interest rates now, if possible.

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Reference:
Saving for income.