T-bill yield falls to 1.59% as demand rebounds

What happened?

If you've been eyeing Singapore T-bills as a place to generate passive income, the latest numbers might be disappointing.

The cut off yield for the 6-month Singapore T-bill (BS25116A) fell to 1.59% in the auction on 14 August 2025.

This follows the decline in the 1-year Singapore T-bill yield earlier. 

With the decline in the T-bill yield, I'll share how it compares to the best fixed deposit rates as a place to park your spare cash. 

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What we learnt from the latest 6-month Singapore T-bill auction

#1 - Demand for the Singapore T-bill rose sharply

The total applications for the 6-month Singapore T-bill increased to S$17.9 billion in the latest auction on 14 August from S$12.9 billion on 31 July.

This represents a significant increase as demand picked up significantly for this issuance.

In fact, it would mark the highest level of T-bill applications since 13 March 2025. 

The amount of competitive bids increased to S$16.5 billion.

If you placed a competitive bid below 1.59%, you would receive 100% of your requested T-bill allocation.

If you bid at exactly 1.59%, the allocation would be around 18%. 

The amount of non-competitive bids also increased to S$1.4 billion.

Since the amount of non-competitive bids was within the allocation limit, all eligible non-competitive bids received full allocation for the T-bill. 

#2 - T-bills issued remained the same

The amount of T-bills issued was at $7.5 billion, which was slightly lower than the previous auction.

With total applications increasing from S$12.9 billion in the previous auction to S$17.9 billion in this latest auction, the ratio of applications to T-bills issued (bid-to-cover ratio) increased from approximately 1.69x to 2.39x.

#3 - Median yield of bids submitted fell

The median yield of bids submitted fell further to 1.55% from 1.68% in the previous auction.

The average yield of bids submitted decreased to 1.48% from 1.60% in the previous auction.

Given the median yield and the cut-off yield, this suggests that a substantial number of bids were placed in the 1.55% to 1.59% range, below the best 6-month fixed deposit rate in Singapore.

What would Beansprout do? 

The drop in the T-bill cut-off yield to 1.59% seems to reflect falling short-term government bond yields, as seen in the lower median yield of bids submitted.

Following the  decline in T-bill cut-off yields, yields have now dipped below the best 6-month fixed deposit rate in Singapore of 2.15% p.a. 

They also fall short of the break-even yield for CPF OA applications, based on calculations using our CPF T-bill calculator.

In light of this, I would consider exploring alternative ways to earn passive income in Singapore. 

For example, some savings accounts continue to offer an interest rate of above 1.59% p.a, even though banks have been cutting the interest rates in recent months. 

Another popular option amongst investors is money market funds, which aim to provide higher potential returns compared to savings accounts, and greater flexibility compared to fixed deposits. 

If you are looking to invest in a money market fund, you can earn an exclusive $50 Fairprice voucher, plus 2 x 6% p.a interest boost coupon (worth up to ~S$60)  with Longbridge Cash Plus when you sign up for a Longbridge account via Beansprout. Learn more about the Longbridge promo here. 

Check out our guide comparing T-bills to fixed deposits, savings accounts and Singapore Savings Bonds to find out the best place to park your cash. 

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