What caught my eye this week.
Exciting news! Well, exciting as measured on our patented Government Bond Excitement Scale, anyway.1 [1]
The Financial Times reports that retail investors can now buy brand new gilt issues on the primary market, thanks to an initiative between government-appointed dealer Winterflood Securities and two online retail platforms – Interactive Investor and Hargreaves Lansdown.
The FT says [2] that:
The platforms have started accepting orders for a seven-year gilt that will be issued on Wednesday 28 February with a coupon of 4 per cent. Retail investors will be given the average price of the auction and will not have to pay any dealing fees, unlike for gilts bought through platforms in the secondary market.
Some sites are saying this is the first-time that ordinary oiks like us have been able to buy gilts direct, but I don’t think that’s correct.
You definitely used to be able to buy gilts from the Government’s Debt Management Office. And I’m sure I recall reading that you could also once get them from other places too, from NS&I to the Bank of England – and even the Post Office?
Could any readers even more ancient than me confirm (Increasingly hapless Google isn’t showing me anything about buying gilts from Ye Olden Times of more than a few years ago.)
Soft launch
I haven’t seen anything on the two platforms themselves about how direct gilt buying will work.
An article from FI Desk [3] quotes Hargreaves Lansdown outlining a summary of the process. But I can’t find the same on the site itself.
I’m sure the FT isn’t hallucinating, Chatbot AI style, so again, if you did put an order in please tell us all how it went in the comments below.
Assuming everything works fine, then buying gilts direct will hopefully become just another standard bit of kit in our investing armoury.
There are circumstances where buying gilts new and holding them until they mature is just the ticket. Being able to do so without fees would be welcome.
Shouting “buy, buy, buy!” as you rub shoulders with the big, swinging bond dealers in the primary market will remain purely optional.
Membership update
The Monevator membership massive continues to swell. We’re now within a dozen sign-ups of our initial target!
Hopefully waverers will join us [4] soon. I think we’ve proven we’re sticking around, nearly a year in…
On that note, a reminder members can read all of our previous Mavens and Moguls missives via the ‘tagged’ archives:
- Mavens articles [5]
- Moguls articles [6]
Having recurring membership revenue at our backs makes it so much easier to commit to Monevator for the long-term. That’s especially true as our churn rate (cancellations) is very low.
Thank you for that too! I know this is partly because you’re signing up [4] to support all our work on Monevator, not just for the premium articles. It’s appreciated.
The other relief is the technology – Stripe payments, subscription handling, and premium site access – has gone extremely smoothly.
However I am still occasionally donning my customer support hat:
- Cookie monsters: If you log-in as a member but still can’t access members articles, try deleting your cookies. Also turn off ad blockers for Monevator (the site is ad-free for members anyway). And maybe try clearing your cache.
- Premium emails: The numbers tell me a very few members are not email subscribers [7]. In most cases this happens because you previously cancelled a Monevator email subscription. If you would like to get member posts by email and you don’t, try resubscribing [7]. Be sure to look out for the system’s opt-in confirmation email.
- Bug busting: Finally, at least one member did that but a glitch meant they were only getting the free emails, not the members-only ones. If that’s happening to you, let me know by replying to this email or via the contact form [8]. We can get it sorted.
Again, huge thanks to the several hundred of you supporting this site as members.
It’s the only long-term sustainable future for Monevator, and I believe for most other quality niche media. Every member counts.
Besides, we don’t want my FIRE-d [9] co-blogger The Accumulator’s Werther’s Originals budget to be entirely at the mercy of sequence of returns risk [10], do we?
Have a great weekend!
From Monevator
Pension drawdown rules: what are they? – Monevator [11]
Tax avoidance versus tax evasion versus tax mitigation – Monevator [12]
From the archive-ator: Holiday strategies to refresh a frugal soul – Monevator [13]
News
Note: Some links are Google search results – in PC/desktop view click through to read the article. Try privacy/incognito mode to avoid cookies. Consider subscribing to sites you visit a lot.
Notting Hill residents’ capital gains exceed population of ‘three cities combined’ – Guardian [14]
Most UK firms that trialled a four-day week will make it permanent – Guardian [15]
Hunt may offer a Budget bung, but Britain faces a ‘tax sandwich’ – Yahoo Finance [16]
Middle class ‘struggling despite incomes of up to £60,000 a year’ – Guardian [17]
The transition to cashless economies faces hurdles – Semafor [18]
Tinder introduces passport scanning ID checks for UK users – BBC [19]
[20]
Energy price cap to drop to £1,690 from April – BBC [21]
Products and services
Sub-4% mortgage rates could disappear again as Santander hikes – This Is Money [22]
Labour’s school fees VAT threat sends a chill through parents [Search result] – FT [23]
Sim-swap fraud: How your bank account can be emptied by phone – Guardian [24]
Last chance! Get between £100 and £5,000 cashback when you open a SIPP with Interactive Investor [25] before 29 Feb. New SIPP customers only. Minimum £10,000 account value. Terms apply. Capital at risk – Interactive Investor [25]
Kroo Bank review – Be Clever With Your Cash [26]
Best downsizing locations revealed – This Is Money [27]
Open an account with low-cost platform InvestEngine via our link [28] and get up to £50 when you invest at least £100 (T&Cs apply. Capital at risk) – InvestEngine [28]
Five ways ISAs are changing from April 2024 – Which [29]
The consumers scoring tiny wins, one company at a time – Guardian [30]
Does bank switching affect your credit score? – Be Clever With Your Cash [31]
Historic homes for sale, in pictures – Guardian [32]
Comment and opinion
Millionaires don’t use astrology. Billionaires do – Of Dollars and Data [33]
Four habits to manage impulsive spending – Darius Foroux [34]
After 34 years, Japan just hit a new all-time high – FT via X [35]
Tell Sid: Popular capitalism and the Thatcher revolution [Podcast] – A.L.T.I.F. [36]
Why the UK property market isn’t working for anyone – Which [37]
If I were a rich man – Humble Dollar [38]
The key to personal finance planning? Be lazy – Morningstar [39]
How much will I need? – Quietly Saving [40]
Update on the silent UK property crash [Podcast] – Property Podcast [41]
Faulty assumptions – Humble Dollar [42]
Hinterland and FIRE – Simple Living in Somerset [43]
The definitive history of private credit – Wall Street Fintech [44]
Portfolio perspectives mini-special
You have millions of dollars. You still don’t need fancy investments – FlowFP [45]
Herschel Walker syndrome – Mutiny Funds [46]
Is your portfolio invested for you or for your advisor? – Forbes [47]
How to use alternatives in your portfolio [US but relevant] – Morningstar [48]
Stock picking is not the same thing as portfolio management – A.W.O.C.S. [49]
Naughty corner: Active antics
Activist Boaz Weinstein is betting big on UK investment trusts – Bloomberg via MSN [50]
Step away from CNBC – Slate [51]
US tech: the most crowded trade on earth – Josh Brown [52]
Venture capital and free lunch – Not Boring [53]
Hermès: the complete history and strategy [Podcast] – Acquired [54]
Want an S&P tracker except worse? Hedge funds have you covered [Search result] – FT [55]
Sad state of the UK capital markets [Graph, a few weeks old] – Snippet [56]
Kindle book bargains
How Not To Be An Antiques Dealer by Drew Pritchard – £0.99 on Kindle [57]
I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi – £0.99 on Kindle [58]
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell – £0.99 on Kindle [59]
Money Box by Paul Lewis – £1.99 on Kindle [60]
Environmental factors
Why investors are betting big on geologic hydrogen – Semafor [61]
Installing green tech could increase your home’s value by 15% – This Is Money [62]
‘World’s largest’ renewable park powers up – Energy Live News [63]
Global soils re running low on potassium, but there’s a fix – The Conversation [64]
For sale: Shark jaw, tiger claw, fish maw – Hakai [65]
Why African filmmakers aren’t making nature documentaries – Semafor [66]
Robot overlord roundup
ChatGPT went temporarily ‘insane’ this week – Ars Technica [67]
It’s only a matter of time before disinformation leads to calamity – Tim Harford [68]
Off our beat
New five-day ‘fasting-like’ diet can reverse your biological age, study claims… – BBC [69]
…though other scientists have put a ceiling on life expectancy – Huffington Post [70]
Post-Brexit ‘Global Britain’ has failed. What’s next? – London School of Economics [71]
We’re close to eradicating polio – Our World in Data [72]
Could Viagra really be a viable treatment for Alzheimer’s? – The Conversation [73]
Indexing the information age [Nerdy] – Aeons [74]
Forget me not – Humble Dollar [75]
The architects who built Palm Springs – Wallpaper [76]
Solar storms, ice cores, and nuns teeth: the new science of history – Guardian [77]
There is no future and that’s good – Raptitude [78]
And finally…
“Do you need to be sitting in front of a screen all day? The answer is no.”
– Robbie Burns, The Naked Trader [79]
Like these links? Subscribe [80] to get them every Friday. Note this article includes affiliate links, such as from Amazon [81] and Interactive Investor [82].
- This scale runs from ZIRP [86]-ishly somnolent at the low end to Mini Budget Mayhem [87] at the peak. [↩ [88]]