The 5% p.a. fixed interest bonds were Dozens’ first financial innovation, designed to introduce customers to investment products, and reward them for putting money aside for a year. And they were a great success! Over the last two years, we’ve had 5,530 bids received for the bonds, of which 4,211 were successful. Over £3.6m worth of bonds have been issued, paying out over £178,210 in interest..
However, the bidding process that was needed to ensure fair distribution was a barrier for some customers. Combined with the internal infrastructure investment, both in terms of time and costs, required to run the bonds, meant they were not having as wide an impact as we would like. We believe, if we use those same resources for other financial products, we can aim for even more successful, and more inclusive financial product launches in 2022. First up, a simpler 1% product will be launching very soon.