National Bonds registers record sales of Dhs1bn in first five months of 2008

The company's sale of bonds touched Dhs1bn at the end of May 2008, an increase of 150% compared to Dhs409m for the same period in 2007.

Growth from the beginning of the year shows an increase in customer numbers by 21% and total volumes by 58%.

Mohammed Qasim Al Ali, Chief Executive Officer of National Bonds Corporation, said that the surge in sales was driven by the company's strategy to increase awareness of the value of savings among all UAE residents. "The simplicity of investing in our bonds has made us a household name in the UAE. The savings habit is getting ingrained deeper in the UAE society as demonstrated by the growth of 150% in the number of bond sales in 2008 compared to the same period in 2007."

Al Ali added that the company's stellar performance in 2007 has greatly strengthened investor confidence: "Earlier this year, we disbursed an annual profit of 6.03%, which is higher than that of any other comparable savings product in the market. The key value proposition is that our bonds are priced as low as Dhs10 and can be purchased from over 300 locations in the UAE. Today, our 420,000 bondholders come from all walks of life, which is testament of our efforts in making National Bonds everyone's favourite place to save.

"We have invested in several key initiatives to enhance customer experience with National Bonds. Among them is an automation system that once implemented will immediately provide customers bond certificates at the time of purchase. This will accelerate their enrollment for the next draw. National Bonds is also looking at other convenient tools by offering customers alternate channels to purchase bonds from the comfort of their home or office."