New Delhi, Nov. 3 -- There was a time when bearer bonds were a fascinating financial instrument. Much like what cash is today, whoever owned these bonds and held them physically was the rightful owner of these bonds. These were fixed-income securities that carried no owner information, thus providing the holder with complete anonymity.

Here, we track the bond market history of the country and how things have evolved and developed over the years.

These bonds were introduced in India under the Special Bearer Bonds (Immunities and Exemptions) Act, 1981. The primary purpose of this introduction was to convert unaccounted wealth into the formal economy, thus granting investors tax immunity and absolute privacy.

Every single bearer bond was ...