LEE BOYCE: Don’t delay grabbing a top savings deal

Our savings guru Sylvia Morris doesn’t have a crystal ball.

But she has trusted industry insiders closely following the latest behind-the-scenes developments at banks and building societies.

So when she hears that companies are quickly shelving their plans to launch new high-quality fixed bonds, you know something is up. In fact, her sources now believe bond yields are starting to level off.

That can only mean one thing: put on your skates and start looking for a home for your savings before you miss out.

You can earn 4.45 percent on the highest paying one-year bond, or as much as 2.81 percent on an easily accessible deal if you need to have cash on hand in case of an emergency.

You will also find much better rates on Isas and even child accounts now compared to the beginning of the year.

Regular savings accounts are one of my favorite ways to make a pot snowball in value, now paying as much as 5 per cent on deposits of up to £500 a month.

I’ve set up a standing order to send money to my regular saver on payday so I can pat myself on the back in 12 months and roll the lottery in Premium Bonds – or spend it on a family vacation.

Don’t be fooled by telling yourself that there are too many options and too much uncertainty in the economy right now.

Doing nothing would be like going into a restaurant that has a lot of menu options and just walking back out because you can’t make up your mind.

The excuse used to be to leave money in bad paying bills: the rates aren’t good enough to make a difference. Now they pay well – and there’s no guarantee they’ll go any higher.

So go, go, go! This is not the time to stare into a crystal ball.

Coins in

A confession: I have a soft spot for coins. There’s something exciting about plucking an unusual specimen from your loose change and putting it away for safekeeping.

Thousands of us will be doing just that when the new King Charles 50p pieces go into circulation next month.

But a word of warning: beware of contenders who want to make a quick buck by offering them online at inflated prices.

Just because you’re one of the first to get your hands on one doesn’t mean you’ve pocketed a small fortune. What you brought with you is a little piece of history: the only circulating coin with King Charles and 2022 stamped on it.

My daughter Brooke loves the Paddington 50p pieces. She has built her own small collection of unusual coins from her pocket money and keeps them in a special piggy bank.

It’s a brilliant early money lesson – all the more reason we should fight to keep cash in circulation.

Before the pandemic, I visited the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, South Wales, and discovered my favorite fact about coins: they are pickled.

Blank coins are placed in a pickling bath to remove surface stains. Ball bearings are then added and spun in a solution of sulfuric acid. After a final wash and dry, they are ready to strike.

Will I get a King Charles coin from my change? You bet your bottom 50 pence, I will.

Branch block

The mailbag of the Geldpost has learned from a trickle of readers that it is difficult to open financial products in bank branches.

Think of saving at the bank where they are already a customer, but also opening payment accounts with new providers. Some have been told to wait a month for an appointment with an advisor.

If customer demand is so high, why are banks cutting business hours to the bone, claiming that no one uses them anymore?

Inevitably, people will become less dependent on branches as banks make using them an irritating experience, with twisting queues and complicated machines replacing human advisors.

Call me cynical, but it all looks like a massive stabbing. Send me an email if you’ve found overcrowded branches in the past few months.

l.boyce@dailymail.co.uk