More than 22 million savers hold Premium Bonds in the hope of winning £1 million in the monthly draw – but how much do you need to own to win the jackpot?
The more you have in your possession, the greater the chance that you will win big. But, contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to own the maximum wealth of £50,000 to bag one of the two £1 million prizes.
Money Mail analyzed data from the past 50 Premium Bond draws and the 100 millionaires created during that period, dating back to May 2020.
The average holdings of a £1 million winner was £38,779. This compares to the average Premium Bonds holding of £5,250.
Only 38 of the 100 new millionaires had the maximum £50,000 in Premium Bonds.
Luck of the Draw: We analyzed data from the past 50 Premium Bond draws and the 100 millionaires created during that period – dating back to May 2020
The smallest holding by a prize winner of £1 million over the past 50 draws was just £1,001 held by a saver in Devon in August 2021.
The smallest holding ever to win the jackpot was £17 in July 2004 and this winner was based in Newham, East London.
In last month’s draw, a Premium Bond holder won a £1 million jackpot prize with £10,575 and since May 2020, six Premium Bond holders have won the top prize with £10,000 or less.
However, the results of the latest draw on Monday show why the myth that top winners are only those with the maximum holdings continues to capture savers’ imaginations.
This month’s £2million winners both had the maximum stake. Coincidentally, one lives in Surrey – home to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s constituency – and the other in Southampton, Rishi Sunak’s birthplace.
Anna Bowes, co-founder of the website Savings Champion, said: ‘I’m surprised that the average holdings of Premium Bond £1m prize winners don’t exceed £38,779, as the more bonds you have, the more likely you are to you win .
It illustrates the arbitrary nature of who could win prizes. But if you bet €38,000 thinking you have a better chance of winning a €1 million prize, expect to be disappointed – the odds are still very high.”
Currently, the underlying interest rate – or average prize payout per year – on Premium Bonds is 4.4 per cent, with the odds of a £1 bond winning a prize being 21,000 to 1.
With a single £1 bond the odds of winning the jackpot are currently 62 billion to one.
We also analyzed the figures for the £100,000 and £50,000 prize winners – with similar results.
Of the 1,639 winners of £100,000 over the past 50 draws, the average holdings were £38,745. Of these, 774 or 47 percent had the maximum holdings of £50,000.
Winning Formula: The average holdings of a £1million winner were £38,779, our findings show. This compares to the average Premium Bonds holding of £5,250
Of the 3,270 winners of £50,000 prizes, the usual amount is £38,741 and 48 per cent had the maximum amount. And just this week, four Premium Bonds holders scooped prizes of £100,000 and £50,000 with assets under £1,000.
This includes a saver in West Yorkshire who won £100,000 with just £300 worth of Premium Bonds, from a bond bought just seven months ago – the equivalent of a 33,233 per cent return.
The popularity of Premium Bonds has increased by 44 percent in the past four years as prices have become more generous.
There were 124.1 billion bond numbers eligible for the June draw – up from 120 billion this time last year and 86.1 billion in March 2020.
A total of 5.9 million prizes worth more than £455 million were paid out to Premium Bond holders this week in the June draw, compared to 3.5 million prizes in March 2020.
Andrew Hagger, personal finance expert from MoneyComms, said: ‘Many people realize that their chances of winning a £1 million jackpot are quite slim, but there are 3,220 prizes available every month worth between £5,000 and £100,000. always a chance to win a great prize.
‘If you have a bigger asset you’re more likely to win, but there are plenty of examples of smaller companies winning six-figure sums.’
The £1 million prize was introduced in April 1994. Since 2005, there have been two £1 million jackpots every month – with the exception of a few special one-off draws.
Premium bonds are provided by National Savings and Investments (NS&I). Every €1 you invest is given a unique number, and these are all put into a random draw every month with a chance of winning.
However, your money does not earn interest while it is deposited. Savers who prefer a guaranteed return on their savings may prefer a traditional savings account or an Isa, which pays an interest.
- Have you won a top Premium Bond award? Let us know at money@dailymail.co.uk
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