JO iPath Series B Bloomberg Coffee Subindex TR ETN

Barclays Bank PLC Trigger Phoenix Autocallable Optimization Securities

$• linked to the common stock of United States Steel Corporation due on or about September 30, 2014
$• linked to the common stock of Citigroup Inc. due on or about September 30, 2014
$• linked to the common stock of NVIDIA Corporation due on or about September 30, 2014

See "Additional Information about Barclays Bank PLC and the Securities" on page FWP-2 of this free writing prospectus. The Securities will have the terms specified in the prospectus dated August 31, 2010, the prospectus supplement dated May 27, 2011 and this free writing prospectus.

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these Securities or determined that this free writing prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

The Securities constitute Barclays Bank PLC's direct, unconditional, unsecured and unsubordinated obligations and are not deposit liabilities and are not insured by the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency of the United States, the United Kingdom or any other jurisdiction.

Additional Information about Barclays Bank PLC and the Securities

Barclays Bank PLC has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") for the offerings to which this free writing prospectus relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus dated August 31, 2010, the prospectus supplement dated May 27, 2011 and other documents Barclays Bank PLC has filed with the SEC for more complete information about Barclays Bank PLC and this offering. Buyers should rely upon the prospectus, prospectus supplement and any relevant free writing prospectus or pricing supplement for complete details. You may get these documents and other documents Barclays Bank PLC has filed for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, Barclays Bank PLC or any agent or dealer participating in this offering will arrange to send you the prospectus, prospectus supplement, preliminary pricing supplement, if any, and final pricing supplement (when completed) and this free writing prospectus if you request it by calling your Barclays Bank PLC sales representative, such dealer or 1-888-227-2275 (Extension 2-3430). A copy of the prospectus may be obtained from Barclays Capital, 745 Seventh Avenue — Attn: US InvSol Support, New York, NY 10019.

You may revoke your offer to purchase the Securities at any time prior to the pricing as described on the cover of this free writing prospectus. We reserve the right to change the terms of, or reject any offer to purchase the Securities prior to their issuance. In the event of any changes to the terms of the Securities, we will notify you and you will be asked to accept such changes in connection with your purchase. You may also choose to reject such changes in which case we may reject your offer to purchase.

You should read this free writing prospectus together with the prospectus dated August 31, 2010, as supplemented by the prospectus supplement dated May 27, 2011 relating to our Global Medium-Term Securities, Series A, of which these Securities are a part. This free writing prospectus, together with the documents listed below, contains the terms of the Securities and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous oral statements as well as any other written materials including preliminary or indicative pricing terms, correspondence, trade ideas, structures for implementation, sample structures, brochures or other educational materials of ours. You should carefully consider, among other things, the matters set forth in "Risk Factors" in the prospectus supplement, as the Securities involve risks not associated with conventional debt securities. We urge you to consult your investment, legal, tax, accounting and other advisors before you invest in the Securities.

You may access these documents on the SEC website at www.sec.gov as follows (or if such address has changed, by reviewing our filings for the relevant date on the SEC website):

Our SEC file number is 1-10257. References to "Barclays," "Barclays Bank PLC," "we," "our" and "us" refer only to Barclays Bank PLC and not to its consolidated subsidiaries. In this document, "Securities" refers to the three different series of Trigger Phoenix Autocallable Optimization Securities that are offered hereby, unless the context otherwise requires.

Investor Suitability

The suitability considerations identified above are not exhaustive. Whether or not the Securities are a suitable investment for you will depend on your individual circumstances, and you should reach an investment decision only after you and your investment, legal, tax, accounting and other advisors have carefully considered the suitability of an investment in the Securities in light of your particular circumstances. You should also review carefully the ''Key Risks'' on page FWP-6 as well as the ''Risk Factors'' beginning on page S-6 of the prospectus supplement for risks related to an investment in the Securities.

Key Risks

An investment in the Securities involves significant risks. Investing in the Securities is not equivalent to investing in the underlying equity. These risks are explained in more detail in the "Risk Factors" section of the accompanying product supplement. We also urge you to consult your investment, legal, tax, accounting and other advisors before you invest in the Securities.

Hypothetical Examples of how the Securities Perform

The examples below illustrate the payment upon a call or at maturity for a $10.00 Security on a hypothetical offering of the Securities, with the following assumptions (the actual terms for each Security offering will be determined on the Trade Date; numbers in the examples below have been rounded for ease of analysis):

Because the closing price of the underlying equity is equal to or greater than the Initial Price on the first Observation Date, the Securities are called on the first Observation Date. The Issuer will pay you on the Call Settlement Date $10.25 per $10.00 principal amount Security, which is equal to your principal amount plus the contingent coupon payment due in connection with the first Observation Date. No further payments will be made on the Securities.

Because the closing price of the underlying equity was less than the Initial Price on each Observation Date, the Securities are not called. Because the Final Price is equal to or greater than the Trigger Price and Coupon Barrier, at maturity, the Issuer will pay you $10.25 per $10.00 principal amount Security, which is equal to your principal amount plus the contingent coupon payment due in connection with the sixth Observation Date.

In addition, because the closing price of the underlying equity was equal to or greater than the Coupon Barrier on the first Observation Date, the Issuer will pay the contingent coupon payment of $0.25 on the first Coupon Payment Date. However, because the closing price of the underlying equity was less than the Coupon Barrier on the second Observation Date, on the third Observation Date, on the fourth Observation Date and on the fifth Observation Date, the Issuer will not pay any contingent coupon payment on the Coupon Payment Dates following the second Observation Date, the third Observation Date, the fourth Observation Date and the fifth Observation Date.

What are the material tax consequences of the Securities?

The material tax consequences of your investment in the Securities are summarized below. The discussion below supplements the discussion under "Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations" in the accompanying prospectus supplement. Except as noted under "Non-U.S. Holders" below, this section applies to you only if you are a U.S. holder (as defined in the accompanying prospectus supplement) and you hold your Securities as capital assets for tax purposes and does not apply to you if you are a member of a class of holders subject to special rules or are otherwise excluded from the discussion in the prospectus supplement (for example, if you did not purchase your Securities in the initial issuance of the Securities). In addition, this discussion does not apply to you if you purchase your Securities for less than the principal amount of the Securities.

The U.S. federal income tax consequences of your investment in the Securities are uncertain and the Internal Revenue Service could assert that the Securities should be taxed in a manner that is different than described below. Pursuant to the terms of the Securities, Barclays Bank PLC and you agree, in the absence of a change in law or an administrative or judicial ruling to the contrary, to characterize your Securities as a contingent income bearing executory contract with respect to the applicable underlying equity.

If your Securities are properly treated as a contingent income bearing executory contract, it would be reasonable (i) to treat any contingent coupon payments you receive on the Securities as items of ordinary income taxable in accordance with your regular method of accounting for U.S. federal income tax purposes and (ii) to recognize capital gain or loss upon the sale, redemption or maturity of your Securities in an amount equal to the difference (if any) between the amount you receive at such time (other than amounts attributable to a contingent coupon payment) and your basis in the Securities for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such gain or loss should generally be long-term capital gain or loss if you have held your Securities for more than one year, and otherwise should generally be short-term capital gain or loss. Short-term capital gains are generally subject to tax at the marginal tax rates applicable to ordinary income. Any character mismatch arising from your inclusion of ordinary income in respect of the contingent coupon payments and capital loss (if any) upon the sale, redemption or maturity of your Securities may result in adverse tax consequences to you because an investor's ability to deduct capital losses is subject to significant limitations.

In the opinion of our special tax counsel, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, it would be reasonable to treat your Securities in the manner described above. This opinion assumes that the description of the terms of the Securities in this free writing prospectus is materially correct.

NO STATUTORY, JUDICIAL OR ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITY DIRECTLY DISCUSSES HOW YOUR SECURITIES SHOULD BE TREATED FOR U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX PURPOSES. AS A RESULT, THE U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE SECURITIES ARE UNCERTAIN. ACCORDINGLY, WE URGE YOU TO CONSULT YOUR TAX ADVISOR AS TO THE TAX CONSEQUENCES OF INVESTING IN THE SECURITIES.

Alternative Treatments . As discussed further in the accompanying prospectus supplement, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service are actively considering various alternative treatments that may apply to instruments such as the Securities, possibly with retroactive effect. Other alternative treatments for your Securities may also be possible under current law. For example, it is possible that the Securities could be treated as debt instrument that is subject to the special tax rules governing contingent payment debt instruments. Under the contingent payment debt instrument rules, you generally would be required to accrue interest on a current basis in respect of the Securities over their term based on the comparable yield, and projected payment schedule for the Securities and pay tax accordingly, even though these amounts may exceed the contingent coupon payments (if any) that are made on the Securities. You would also be required to make adjustments to your accruals if the actual amounts that you receive in any taxable year differ from the amounts shown on the projected payment schedule. In addition, any gain you may recognize on the sale, redemption or maturity of the Securities would be taxed as ordinary interest income and any loss you may recognize on the sale, redemption or maturity of the Securities would generally be ordinary loss to the extent of the interest you previously included as income without an offsetting negative adjustment and thereafter would be capital loss. You should consult your tax advisor as to the special rules that govern contingent payment debt instruments.

It is also possible that your Securities could be treated as an investment unit consisting of (i) a debt instrument that is issued to you by us and (ii) a put option in respect of the applicable underlying equity that is issued by you to us. You should consult your tax advisor as to the possible consequences of this alternative treatment.

In addition, it is possible that (i) you should not include the contingent coupon payments (if any) in income as you receive them and instead you should reduce your basis in your Securities by the amount of the contingent coupon payments that you receive; (ii) you should not include the contingent coupon payments (if any) in income as you receive them and instead, upon the sale, redemption or maturity of your Securities, you should recognize short-term capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between (a) the amount of the contingent coupon payments made to you over the term of the Securities (including any contingent coupon payment received at redemption or maturity or the amount of cash that you receive upon a sale that is attributable to the contingent coupon payments to be made on the Securities) and (b) the excess (if any) of (1) the amount you paid for your Securities over (2) the amount of cash you receive upon sale, redemption or maturity (excluding any contingent coupon payment received at redemption or maturity or the amount of cash that you receive upon a sale that is attributable to the contingent coupon payments to be made on the Securities); or (iii) if a contingent coupon payment is made at redemption or maturity, such contingent coupon payment should not separately be taken into account as ordinary income but instead should increase the amount of capital gain or decrease the amount of capital loss that you recognize at such time.

Furthermore, it is also possible that the Securities could be treated as notional principal contracts. If your Securities were treated as notional principal contracts, you could be required to accrue income over the term of your Securities (which may exceed the contingent coupons, if any, that are paid on the Securities), and any gain or loss that you would recognize upon the maturity of your Securities would likely be treated as ordinary gain or loss.

You should consult your tax advisor with respect to these possible alternative treatments.

For a further discussion of the tax treatment of your Securities as well as other possible alternative characterizations, please see the discussion under the heading "Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Certain Notes Treated as Forward Contracts or Executory Contracts" in the accompanying prospectus supplement. You should consult your tax advisor as to the possible alternative treatments in respect of the Securities. For additional, important considerations related to tax risks associated with investing in the Securities, you should also examine the discussion in "Key Risks—Taxes", in this free writing prospectus.

Medicare Tax . As discussed under "Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Medicare Tax" in the accompanying prospectus supplement, certain U.S. holders will be subject to a 3.8% Medicare tax on their "net investment income" if their modified adjusted gross income for the taxable year is over a certain threshold. Net investment income will include any gain that a U.S. holder recognizes upon the sale, redemption or maturity of the Securities, unless such income is derived in the ordinary course of the conduct of a trade or business (other than a trade or business that consists of certain passive or trading activities). It is not clear, however, whether the Medicare tax would apply to any contingent coupon payments that you receive on the Securities, unless such contingent coupon payments are derived in the ordinary course of the conduct of a trade or business (in which case the contingent coupon payments should be treated as net investment income if they are derived in a trade or business that consists of certain trading or passive activities and should otherwise not be treated as net investment income). Accordingly, U.S. holders that do not hold the Securities in the ordinary conduct of a trade or business should consult their tax advisors regarding the application of the Medicare tax to the contingent coupon payments.

" Specified Foreign Financial Asset" Reporting . Under legislation enacted in 2010, owners of "specified foreign financial assets" with an aggregate value in excess of $50,000 (and in some circumstances, a higher threshold) may be required to file an information report with respect to such assets with their tax returns. "Specified foreign financial assets" generally include any financial accounts maintained by foreign financial institutions, as well as any of the following (which may include your Securities), but only if they are not held in accounts maintained by financial institutions: (i) stocks and securities issued by non-U.S. persons, (ii) financial instruments and contracts held for investment that have non-U.S. issuers or counterparties and (iii) interests in foreign entities. Holders are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the application of this legislation to their ownership of the Securities.

Non-U.S. Holders . Barclays currently does not withhold on coupon payments to non-U.S. holders in respect of instruments such as the Securities. However, if Barclays determines that there is a material risk that it will be required to withhold on any such payments, Barclays may withhold on any contingent coupon payments at a 30% rate, unless you have provided to Barclays (i) a valid Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI or (ii) a valid Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN claiming tax treaty benefits that reduce or eliminate withholding. If Barclays elects to withhold and you have provided Barclays with a valid Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN claiming tax treaty benefits that reduce or eliminate withholding, Barclays may nevertheless withhold up to 30% on any contingent coupon payments it makes to you if there is any possible characterization of the payments that would not be exempt from withholding under the treaty. Non-U.S. holders will also be subject to the general rules regarding information reporting and backup withholding as described under the heading "Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Information Reporting and Backup Withholding " in the accompanying prospectus supplement.

In addition, the Treasury Department has issued proposed regulations under Section 871(m) of the Internal Revenue Code which could ultimately require us to treat all or a portion of any payment in respect of your Securities as a "dividend equivalent" payment that is subject to withholding tax at a rate of 30% (or a lower rate under an applicable treaty). However, such withholding would potentially apply only to payments made after December 31, 2013. You could also be required to make certain certifications in order to avoid or minimize such withholding obligations, and you could be subject to withholding (subject to your potential right to claim a refund from the Internal Revenue Service) if such certifications were not received or were not satisfactory. You should consult your tax advisor concerning the potential application of these regulations to payments you receive with respect to the Securities when these regulations are finalized.

Information about the Underlying Equity

Included in the following pages is a brief description of the underlying issuers of each of the underlying equities. This information has been obtained from publicly available sources. Set forth below is a table that provides the quarterly high and low closing prices for each underlying equity. We obtained the closing price information set forth below from Bloomberg Professional ^® service ("Bloomberg") without independent verification. You should not take the historical prices of the underlying equity as an indication of future performance.

We urge you to read the following section in the accompanying prospectus supplement: "Reference Assets — Equity Securities — Reference Asset Issuer and Reference Asset Information". Companies with securities registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, are required to file financial and other information specified by the SEC periodically. Such information can be reviewed electronically through a website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.go v. Information filed with the SEC by the issuer of the underlying equity can be located by reference to its SEC file number provided below. In addition, information filed with the SEC can be inspected and copied at the Public Reference Section of the SEC, 100 F Street, N.E., Room 1580, Washington, D.C. 20549. Copies of this material can also be obtained from the Public Reference Section, at prescribed rates.

Information from outside sources is not incorporated by reference in, and should not be considered part of, this free writing prospectus or any accompanying prospectus or prospectus supplement. We have not independently verified any of the information herein obtained from outside sources.

United States Steel Corporation

According to publicly available information, United States Steel Corporation (the "Company") is an integrated steel producer with production operations in North America and Europe. The Company is also engaged in several other business activities, consisting primarily of transportation services (railroad and barge operations) and real estate operations.

Information filed by the Company with the SEC can be located by reference to its SEC file number: 001-16811, or its CIK Code: 0001163302. The Company's common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "X".

Historical Information

The following table sets forth the quarterly high and low closing prices for the underlying equity, based on daily closing prices on New York Stock Exchange, as reported by Bloomberg. The closing price of the underlying equity on March 15, 2013 was $20.21. The actual Initial Price will be the closing price of the underlying equity on the Trade Date. The historical performance of the underlying equity should not be taken as an indication of the future performance of the underlying equity during the term of the Securities.

The graph below illustrates the performance of the underlying equity from January 2, 2003 to March 15, 2013. The dotted line represents a hypothetical Coupon Barrier and Trigger Price of $13.14, which is equal to 65% of the closing price on March 15, 2013. The actual Coupon Barrier and Trigger Price will be based on the closing price of the underlying equity on the Trade Date.

PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS.

The graph set forth above shows the historical performance of the underlying equity based on the daily closing price of the underlying equity. We obtained the closing prices above from Bloomberg. We have not independently verified any of the information obtained from Bloomberg. Historical performance of the underlying equity is not an indication of future performance. Future performance of the underlying equity may differ significantly from historical performance, either positively or negatively. We cannot give you assurance that the performance of the underlying equity will result in the return of any of your initial investment.

Citigroup Inc.

According to publicly available information, Citigroup Inc. (the "Company") is a global diversified financial services holding company whose businesses provide consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a range of financial products and services including consumer banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage and wealth management.

Information filed by the Company with the SEC can be located by reference to its SEC file number: 001-09924, or its CIK Code: 0000831001. The Company's common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "C".

Historical Information

The following table sets forth the quarterly high and low closing prices for the underlying equity, based on daily closing prices on the New York Stock Exchange, as reported by Bloomberg. The closing price of the underlying equity on March 15, 2013 was $47.26. The actual Initial Price will be the closing price of the underlying equity on the Trade Date. The historical performance of the underlying equity should not be taken as an indication of the future performance of the underlying equity during the term of the Securities.

The graph below illustrates the performance of the underlying equity from January 2, 2003 to March 15, 2013. The dotted line represents a hypothetical Coupon Barrier and Trigger Price of $37.81, which is equal to 80% of the closing price on March 15, 2013. The actual Coupon Barrier and Trigger Price will be based on the closing price of the underlying equity on the Trade Date.

PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS.

The graph set forth above shows the historical performance of the underlying equity based on the daily closing price of the underlying equity. We obtained the closing prices above from Bloomberg. We have not independently verified any of the information obtained from Bloomberg. Historical performance of the underlying equity is not an indication of future performance. Future performance of the underlying equity may differ significantly from historical performance, either positively or negatively. We cannot give you assurance that the performance of the underlying equity will result in the return of any of your initial investment.

NVIDIA Corporation

According to publicly available information, NVIDIA Corporation (the "Company") is a graphics processing company that develops hardware and software solutions for the visual computing, high performance computing and mobile computing markets through its various product offerings.

Information filed by the Company with the SEC can be located by reference to its SEC file number: 000-23985, or its CIK Code: 0001045810. The Company's common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "NVDA".

Historical Information

The following table sets forth the quarterly high and low closing prices for the underlying equity, based on daily closing prices on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, as reported by Bloomberg. The closing price of the underlying equity on March 15, 2013 was $12.65. The actual Initial Price will be the closing price of the underlying equity on the Trade Date. The historical performance of the underlying equity should not be taken as an indication of the future performance of the underlying equity during the term of the Securities.

FWP-16

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