The funds accumulated may then be used to make a larger purchase such as taking out a savings bond or to pay a large upcoming bill.
From 1880[1] ordinary penny postage stamps were used to save up one shilling (12 pence) which was then sufficient to open a Post Office Savings Bank account, although the minimum amount required changed to £1 in 1912.
A wide variety of utility companies made use of the stamps, particularly regional electronic companies, but also British Telecom for telephone bills and government bodies for payment of National Insurance contributions or television licences.
[6] Belgium and France used special savings stamps in the 1880s[2] and many other countries around the world have used them for diverse purposes, including Canada, India, Russia, Bulgaria and Singapore.
War savings stamps were issued by several British Commonwealth countries, including Gold Coast[7][8] and India.