For the record, as of 1800 hrs IST the spot price of the metal was sniffing at USD 3,010 an ounce on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
The SGBs 2016-17 series IV was issued on March 17, 2017 under the sovereign gold bond scheme of the Centre and are repayable on the expiration of eight years from the date of issue. “Accordingly, the final redemption date of the above tranche shall be March 17, 2025,” the central bank said.
SGB 2016-17 series I, issued at Rs 3,119 on August 5, 2016, was redeemed in the first week of August 2024 at Rs 6,938/gram. The series II, issued at Rs 3,150 on September 30, 2016, was redeemed on September 30, 2024, at Rs 7,517, the third series, issued at Rs 3,007 on November 17, 2016, was redeemed on November 16, 2024, at Rs 7,788.
Two SGBs launched in 2016 have already matured in 2024 redeemed.
Since July 2024, the government has redeemed six tranches of SGBs, with 61 tranches remaining outstanding, and the final redemption is scheduled for February 2032.
The July 2024 budget projected that government liabilities on gold bonds would Rs 85,000 crore by the end of this fiscal year, almost nine times the number in FY20. The duty cut led to a massive 6% plunge in domestic gold prices hugely benefitting the government in redemption payout. Yet the first redemption gave the investor a premium of 122%.