No, I don't think you have to cash them in, as I didn't and my contribution still did register. But it's odd anyway. What's the truth here, 2556 or 3418? I had cashed in all bonds before going out, so this is exactly what I got from the Pineapple:
Still my single sortie from yesterday evening, nothing changed. I think it's the ingame numbers, but then, I'm confident INARA just displays what the API delivers
EDIT: Out of curiosity, I cashed in the bonds now, at Hutner to make sure, and my contribution didn't change. So I guess cashing them in is optional indeed.
O7,