Singapore Treasury Bills (T-bills): What Is Cut-Off Yield, Median Yield, And Average Yield

Singapore Treasury Bills, or T-bills, are commonly used by investors who want to earn a market-determined return on funds that they can set aside for a relatively short period.

However, unlike a fixed deposit, you will not know the exact return on a T-bill before submitting your application. The yield is determined through an auction conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

When MAS releases the auction result, you will see several figures, including the cut-off yield, median yield and average yield. While they may look similar, each figure tells investors something different about the auction.

Recap: What Are Singapore T-bills?

T-bills are short-term Singapore Government Securities issued by the Singapore Government. They have maturities of either six months or one year.

Six-month T-bills are generally issued every two weeks, while one-year T-bills are generally issued every three months. Investors should check the MAS issuance calendar for the applicable announcement, auction, issue and maturity dates.

T-bills do not make regular interest or coupon payments. Instead, they are issued at a discount to their face value and redeemed at their full face value when they mature. The difference between the amount paid and the amount received at maturity represents the investor’s return.

For example, an investor may be allotted S$5,000 in T-bills but pay less than S$5,000 for them. At maturity, the investor receives the full S$5,000 face value.

Investors can apply using cash, Supplementary Retirement Scheme funds or eligible Central Provident Fund funds. Investors deciding how to deploy their SRS or CPF savings may also compare T-bills with other SRS-eligible investments, taking into account investment risk, fees and their intended holding period. Robo-advisors such as Endowus, StashAway, AutoWealth, and Syfe would allow you to invest your SRS or CPF savings into various asset classes beyond just T-Bills.

Should You Make A Competitive Or Non-Competitive T-bill Bid?

T-bills are issued through auctions. When applying, investors must choose between making a competitive or non-competitive bid.

Your choice affects your likelihood of receiving an allotment, but all successful applicants in the same auction receive T-bills at the same cut-off yield and price.

Making A Non-Competitive Bid

For a non-competitive bid, you specify only the amount you wish to invest. You do not indicate the minimum yield that you are willing to accept. Successful non-competitive applicants receive the cut-off yield determined by the competitive bids.

Non-competitive applications are allotted before competitive applications, subject to a 40% cap on the total amount offered in the auction. If non-competitive applications exceed this limit, applicants will receive a pro-rated allotment.

A non-competitive bid may be suitable when securing an allotment is more important to you than setting a minimum acceptable yield.

However, you must be prepared to accept the eventual cut-off yield. This could be lower than the yield from the previous auction or the returns available from alternatives such as fixed deposits and savings accounts.

Before applying, investors may wish to compare the potential T-bill yield with alternative products such as current fixed-deposit rates, savings-account interest and cash-management solutions. For example, platforms such as Endowus and Syfe allow investors to access money market funds that may offer higher returns, although their risks, conditions, and protections can differ.

Read Also: Complete Guide To Cash Management Accounts In Singapore

Making A Competitive Bid

For a competitive bid, you specify the minimum yield that you are willing to accept, to two decimal places. Competitive applications are allotted from the lowest submitted yield upwards until the amount available for competitive bids has been filled.

This means:

• A bid below the cut-off yield will generally be fully allotted.
• A bid exactly at the cut-off yield may be partially allotted.
• A bid above the cut-off yield will be unsuccessful.

For example, suppose the cut-off yield is 1.50% per annum.

An investor who submitted a competitive bid of 1.40% would be prepared to accept any yield of at least 1.40%. As the auction cleared at 1.50%, the application would be successful and the investor would receive the cut-off yield of 1.50%.

An investor who submitted a bid of 1.50% may receive only a partial allotment, depending on the total value of applications at the cut-off yield. An investor who submitted a bid of 1.60% would receive no allotment because the auction’s cut-off yield was below the investor’s minimum acceptable yield.

A competitive bid may be more suitable when you have a minimum return in mind and would prefer not to invest if the T-bill yield falls below it.

Understanding A T-bill Auction Result

MAS publishes the auction result after applications have closed.

Using the six-month T-bill BS26113X, auctioned on 2 July 2026 and issued on 7 July 2026, as an example, the auction result included:

What Is The Cut-Off Yield For A T-bill?

The cut-off yield is the highest accepted yield among successful competitive applications. It determines the yield and price received by all successful competitive and non-competitive applicants in that auction.

Competitive bids are ranked from the lowest submitted yield to the highest. MAS accepts bids in that order until the available amount has been allotted. The yield at which the auction amount is filled becomes the cut-off yield.

Applications submitted below the cut-off yield are generally fully allotted. Applications at the cut-off yield may be partially allotted, while those above it are unsuccessful.

How Much Would You Earn From A T-bill?

T-bills are quoted using a yield and a price per S$100 of face value.

For BS26113X, the cut-off yield was 1.50% per annum and the cut-off price was 99.252. This means an investor allotted S$5,000 in face value would pay approximately:

S$5,000 × 99.252 ÷ 100 = S$4,962.60

When the T-bill matures, the investor receives its S$5,000 face value.

The approximate return would therefore be:

S$5,000 − S$4,962.60 = S$37.40

The return is not paid as a separate interest payment. It comes from the difference between the discounted purchase price and the amount received at maturity.

The actual T-bill price accounts for the number of days to maturity and uses a 365-day year. This means multiplying the face value by the annualised yield and simply dividing it by two may produce a slightly different figure from the official auction price.

Investors using CPF Ordinary Account funds should also consider the CPF interest they may forgo during withdrawals, as well as any transaction charges. The published T-bill yield alone does not determine whether investing CPF funds will produce a higher overall return.

What Is The Median Yield For A T-bill?

The median yield indicates the middle of the distribution of competitive applications.

Broadly, it separates the submitted competitive bids into two halves. It indicates where the competitive demand was concentrated during the auction.

In the BS26113X auction, the median yield was 1.45% per annum, compared with a cut-off yield of 1.50% per annum.

The median yield does not determine what successful investors earn. All successful applicants receive the cut-off yield, regardless of whether they made a non-competitive bid or submitted a successful competitive bid below the cut-off.

For most retail investors, the median yield is therefore mainly a descriptive auction statistic. It may help investors understand how competitive bids were distributed, but it should not be treated as a forecast of the yield for the next auction.

What Is The Average Yield For A T-bill?

The average yield is the weighted average yield of the competitive applications submitted during the auction.

As it is weighted by the amounts applied for, larger applications have a greater influence on the average than smaller applications.

In the BS26113X auction, the average yield was 1.38% per annum. This was below both the median yield of 1.45% and the cut-off yield of 1.50%.

The difference between the average and cut-off yields can give investors a broad indication of how bids were distributed. An average yield that is materially below the cut-off suggests that a significant amount was submitted at yields below the eventual cut-off.

However, the average yield does not represent the return received by the average retail investor. It also does not determine the yield paid to successful applicants.

Like the median yield, it is mainly useful for understanding the overall auction result.

Cut-Off Yield Vs Median Yield Vs Average Yield

Here is what the three figures mean:

For retail investors, the cut-off yield is the most important figure because it determines the price paid and the return received by all successful applicants.

The median and average yields provide additional information about the competitive bids submitted, but they do not affect the return on your T-bill allotment.

Should You Use The Previous Cut-Off Yield For Your Next Bid?

The previous auction result can provide a reference point, but it does not guarantee the outcome of the next auction.

T-bill yields may change based on prevailing interest rates, market expectations and demand from institutional and retail investors. Submitting a competitive yield below the previous cut-off may increase your likelihood of receiving an allotment, but it also means you are willing to accept a lower return.

Conversely, bidding above the eventual cut-off protects you from accepting a yield below your minimum requirement, but your application will be unsuccessful.

Investors should therefore avoid choosing a bid solely to maximise their chances of allotment. They should first compare the minimum yield they are willing to accept with the returns, liquidity and conditions offered by other cash-management options.

A non-competitive bid offers a relatively higher likelihood of allotment but requires you to accept the eventual cut-off yield. A competitive bid allows you to set a minimum acceptable yield but introduces the possibility of receiving a partial allotment or no allotment.

Ultimately, the appropriate bid depends on whether your priority is securing an allotment or earning at least a specified return.

Read Also: Treasury Bills (T-bills): What Are They And How You Can Buy Them