Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “If you blinked, you’ll have missed higher NS&I bond rates, because just two months after they were boosted, they’ve been trimmed back again. This isn’t a surprise.
“The autumn and winter tend to see more fixed rate accounts mature, so there’s always a risk that savers will take their money and leave.
“That was definitely a theme in September, when money was flowing out of NS&I. There’s every chance that this temporary boost was designed to stem the flow.
“There was actually a significant rise in savings in November, when £2.45 billion was paid into NS&I, so now those higher fixed rates have done the job, cuts were in order.
“The good news is that the bonds are still offering more than they did before the November bump.
“However, the bad news is that they fall short of the most competitive deals in the market.
“The fixed rate market has held up impressively in the face of the Bank of England rate cuts – in part because the market isn’t expecting interest rate cuts to be particularly thick on the ground in 2026.
“You can still get 4.45 per cent on a one-year bond, 4,16 per cent over two years, 4.21 per cent over three years and 4.31 per cent over five years.
“It means you can get a better deal from some of the online banks and savings platforms, so it’s important to check what’s on offer before you tie your money up.”
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