China's Ministry of Finance (MOF) said Friday that it would start issuing two batches of electronic savings bonds later this month with a total value of 20 billion yuan (3 billion U.S. dollars).

One batch worth 10 billion yuan had a term of one year, with a fixed annual interest rate of 2.6 percent, said the MOC in a statement on the its official website.

The other batch of three-year bonds is worth 10 billion yuan, with a fixed annual interest rate of 3.73 percent, according to the statement.

The two batches of bonds would be issued from Oct. 15 to Oct. 28, with the interest to be calculated from October 15 and paid annually, said the statement.

Electronic savings bonds are seen as more convenient than other types of bonds as interest can be paid as a direct deposit into the investor's account.

Only individual investors can buy these bonds, the MOF said. The first such bonds were issued in June 2006.