London, 5 December 2024. PrimaryBid, the leading capital markets technology platform, has facilitated the placing of over £125 million of new investor capital into UK Treasury Bills since launching its Retail Eligible Debt Capital Market Service earlier this year. This marks a significant evolution in UK investor access to products that offer favourable returns and income.

Working in collaboration with the UK's largest investment platforms - AJ Bell, Hargreaves Lansdown, and interactive investor - PrimaryBid has integrated investors into the traditionally institutional UK Treasury Bill market through its technology infrastructure and industry connectivity. Opening access to a combined investor base of over 3 million individual investors, with more than £300 billion in assets under management.

This milestone demonstrates investor appetite for lower-risk investments which provide stable returns in a higher-interest rate environment, with UK Treasury Bills currently offering annualised returns of over 4.5%. Investor participation has been broad, with individual investments ranging from £1,000 and to £100,000+ per ticket. Data show investors being tax efficient with their purchases, with a significant proportion of investors adding holdings to SIPPs, ISAs and Lifetime ISAs.
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This development establishes a technology driven model for broader fixed income market access. It comes at a pivotal moment for UK debt markets, as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) prepares to review rules for investor access to corporate debt (Bonds) in early 2025. Currently, only 1% of regulated UK corporate debt issuance is accessible to self-invested investors and wealth managers, despite debt sitting higher in the capital structure than equity.

Stacey Parsons, Head of Fixed Income at PrimaryBid, said: "It is crucial that UK investors can access investment returns on equal terms to institutional investors. Our success in unlocking £125 million of new retail capital demonstrates how technology, education, and collaboration can modernise traditional and legacy capital market practices. Approximately 20% of our investor participation has been from women, so we have more to do in this space to provide greater opportunity to a wider demographic in the UK."

About UK Treasury Bills (Discounted Notes)

• UK Treasury Bills are issued by the UK's Debt Management Office (DMO) on behalf of the UK Government. Discounted Notes offer 1 month, 3 month and  6 month.
  
• Returns are generated from the difference between the purchase price (typically below £100) and the £100 redemption value at maturity
  
• Investment gains are subject to income tax and follow deeply discounted securities taxation rules; Eligible for holding within SIPPs and ISAs, LISA; not eligible for CGT exemption.
  

About UK Fixed Income Market Reform

• The FCA is reviewing rules for retail access to corporate debt markets in 2025, with the regulator noting in its May 2023 engagement papers that the effect of regulation “appears to have been to exclude smaller scale investors from the best products”
  
• Currently only 1% of regulated UK debt issuance is accessible to retail investors
  
• The review aims to align the UK with other markets where retail participation in debt markets is more established
  
• In 2024, PrimaryBid, MUFG Pension & Market Services, London Stock Exchange Issuer Services and Simmons & Simmons brought together over 100 industry experts including trade associations, HM Treasury, the Financial Conduct Authority, banks, lawyers, issuers and advisers for a landmark event, “Returning Retail to UK Debt Capital Markets”
  

About PrimaryBid

• PrimaryBid is a leading fintech firm building advanced retail capital-raising solutions for regulated financial institutions, enabling smart investor inclusion in public and private offerings globally. Its SaaS platform facilitates efficient investor access in IPOs, follow-ons, block sales, and corporate and government bonds, and transforms retail investor participation into a systematic and data-driven component of capital raising.