The French continue to withdraw funds from Livret A accounts – historic decline since 2009

Paris – June 24, 2026: In May 2026, the French once again withdrew more money from the Livret A, one of the most popular regulated savings accounts in the country, than they deposited. This marked the fifth consecutive month of net decreases, with withdrawals exceeding deposits by 740 million euros in May. As a result, the cumulative decrease for the first five months of the year reached a total of 3.01 billion euros. Such a continuous decline has been observed for the first time since 2009.

The main reason for this change is the reduction of the Livret A interest rate. The interest rate, which was 3% until early 2025, was lowered to 1.5% as of February 1, 2026. Due to this significant cut, many savers started looking for alternative investment products offering higher returns. Life insurance in particular has become very popular, recording a record inflow of 13.9 billion euros in May 2026 alone.

Despite the outflows, the total balance of the Livret A remains high. As of the end of May 2026, the balance stood at 447 billion euros. However, the actual returns for savers are negative. While the inflation rate was 2.4% in May 2026, the Livret A interest rate was only 1.5%, resulting in an approximate 0.9% loss in real purchasing power for savers. Specifically, depositing 10,000 euros results in an annual loss of about 90 euros in value.

The outlook for the Livret A interest rate is even more negative. According to estimates on May 30, 2026, the interest rate could fall further to about 1.4% by August 1, 2026. This contradicts the initial expectations that the rate would be raised to 1.6% or 1.8% due to rising inflation. An additional interest rate cut could further accelerate the outflow of funds from the Livret A.

Given the current situation, savers need to reconsider their investment strategies to protect asset values from inflation. The trend towards seeking higher-yield products such as life insurance or other investment opportunities is expected to continue increasing. Authorities and financial service providers face the challenge of maintaining savers’ trust in regulated savings accounts and offering attractive products.

The current state of the Livret A reflects the economic conditions in France. Inflation and low interest rates have a clear impact on saving behavior. Experts predict that unless interest rates improve or new incentives are introduced, the trend of fund withdrawals from regulated savings accounts will continue in the coming months.