NS&I Increases Premium Bonds Prize Fund Rate to 3.8 Percent

National Savings & Investments announced the winners of the August 2026 Premium Bonds draw, headlined by two £1 million top prizes awarded to savers in Kent and Hampshire and Isle of Wight. The organization also implemented a prize fund rate increase to 3.8 per cent, marking the first such rise in nearly three years and improving the odds of winning for any £1 bond to 22,000 to one.

Regional payouts for the August draw included significant wins in Wales, where 37 savers received five-figure prizes, including one £100,000 award. In the Cumberland Council area, one resident won £10,000 from a bond purchased in October 1983 despite holding only £15 in bonds, while another north Cumbria resident won £5,000 from a 1989 purchase.

These results follow the July 2026 draw, which saw substantial payouts in North East England. In Tyne and Wear, two savers each won £100,000, contributing to a regional total of £390,000 for prizes over £5,000. Other July winners included residents of Northumberland and County Durham.

NS&I continues to urge customers to update their contact information to recover unclaimed funds. As of July of the previous year, over 2.5 million prizes totaling more than £103 million remained unclaimed.