Last week we recorded the 10-year anniversary episode of the This is Money podcast in front of a live audience.

At one point, we talked about Premium Bonds and I joked I was hodling them – a slang term made popular by the crypto world, meaning do not sell your bitcoin, ethereum and co when prices drop.

In other words: hold on for dear life.

And that’s what I’m doing with Premium Bonds. Although my wealth held in the NS&I savings product doesn’t potentially drop like volatile crypto, it is eroded away by inflation in the form of not getting a consistent return.

The average holding in Premium Bonds is £5,250, with around 24million people having them – many, of course, max out the £50,000, lots of others will have less than £100, potentially bought as far back as the late 1950s.

They have been in the news again recently, with the average prize payout rate dropping to 4 per cent from a recent high of 4.65 per cent – the third cut since March and back to the level of August 2023.

Poor return: I’ve made a 0% return on my Premium Bonds since 2022 – but I’m sticking with it

The odds of a £1 Premium Bond winning any prize is 22,000 to one. The more you hold, the more likely you are to win a monthly prize.

My personal return since opening them two-and-a-half years ago is 0 per cent. That’s right, I’ve never won a prize.

I should point here I hold just shy of the average amount, with my two biggest investments coming in the middle of 2023 and start of 2024.

With average luck, I should have won *something*, but alas, I haven’t.

‘Move your money you moron’, has raced through my head a few times in recent months, and the prize payout dropping, it has put that into sharper focus.

But the thing is, no regular savings product gives a little monthly thrill of potentially winning big – probably the biggest reason people don’t feel the need to move, unless the rate really goes south.

Plus, you can get your stake out at any time, unlike, say the lottery, which I seldom get involved in.

Turning back to the live podcast, after the show was recorded and I mingled with some of the audience, it’s what listeners asked me about most – and told their own stories of Premium Bonds.

In short, it’s clear us Britons are extremely fond of them and like the weather, they are also a great topic to grumble about.

Most of us also know a friend of a friend who has won a chunky Premium Bonds prize. Earlier in the year, an acquaintance of mine told me her mum had scooped £50,000.

It’s the hope that gets you.

Premium Bonds make up a fraction of my portfolio of savings, investments and pension. The pillar stone should always be your pension, alongside Isa savings – both cash and stocks and shares.

And while I’m nowhere near to maxing out my annual £20,000 annual allowance, I still like to be in it to win it with the Premium Bonds.

They are a perfect home for those who are maxed out in terms of Isa allowance and have built up a tidy pension pot – with a £50,000 limit, plus tax-free prizes and a government-backed guarantee is a no-brainer.

Indeed, nearly 1.2million now max Premium Bonds out, which is part of the reason why it has become harder to win with smaller holdings.

At the other end of the spectrum, if you are just starting out on a savings and investment journey, they are probably not the right home for your cash – start with a regular saver, build up a pot, then form a diverse portfolio, then consider it.

Yes, people do occasionally win big on less than £1,000 – but they are exception, not the norm.

Indeed, in the last draw, the average holding of someone who won £100,000 was £41,141 and for £50,000 it was £40,813.

Crunching back the past 12 months of draws, the average holding of a £1million winner is a smaller £36,949. But nobody with a holding under £10,000 has won the jackpot this year – and nine of the £1million winners held the max of £50,000.

There is an exception, in my view, justifying small holdings – and that’s for children… although certain financial experts might disagree.

Yes, money would be better served in a Junior Isa or stocks and shares Isa, but Premium Bonds as an alternative present for birthdays and Christmas is more palatable in my opinion versus another needless toy from family members and friends.

It’s unlikely the money will grow much with small amounts trickling in, but over time, it’ll build up at least – and from experience, grandparents can get their head around Premium Bonds more than money being diverted elsewhere.

So, should I sell them all, and buy again? That’s a classic myth in the Premium Bonds world… that somehow numbers are unlucky, especially among those who bought them decades ago.

But by doing that, I’m only going to miss out on a draw – and all bonds have an equal chance of winning. It’s just that people are more likely to buy them in huge chunks now compared to the odd quid here and there in the 1950s and 1960s.

You can read a Premium Bonds conspiracy theory piece I helped put together a few years ago.

For the foreseeable, I’ll be hodling. What are your Premium Bonds plans? Let me know: lee.boyce@thisismoney.co.uk

SAVE MONEY, MAKE MONEY

1% cashback

1% cashback

On debit card spending. Max £15 p/m*

Energy bills

Energy bills

Find out if you could save with a fixed tariff

Free share offer

Free share offer

No account fee and free share dealing

4.5% 1-year Isa

4.5% 1-year Isa

Hampshire Trust with Hargreaves Lansdown

Sipp fee offer

Sipp fee offer

Get six months fee-free on a Sipp

Affiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence. *Chase: Cashback available for first year. Exceptions apply. 18+, UK residents.