And while the government in Belgium managed to amass billions by offering its own savings account, under “state bonds,” the Netherlands should do the same. This is what the economist Edin Mojácic advocates. Almost half of all Dutch government debt is in the hands of people living outside the Netherlands.
In Belgium, the “country voucher” has been open since Thursday. People from all over the European Union can keep their savings there for one year. In return, the government provides a net return of 2.81 percent. The main purpose of government bonds is to wake up banks to raise interest rates. Within a day, the government has already raised nearly two billion euros, while it takes another week to register.
“If I were the new Minister of Finance, this would be one of the first actions I would take.”
Mojacic believes that this option could also be financially attractive to the Netherlands. He points, among others, to the big Dutch banks that offer “only” savings interest ranging from 1.25 to 1.50 per cent. “But we’re just talking about the advantage for the small saver who can get a higher return.”
It also refers to the financial benefits accruing to the state of the Netherlands. “We also pay interest on the national debt, we paid 5 billion euros on it last year. While we were then in a year with historically low interest rates. It is estimated that the interest costs for the Dutch state could exceed 10 billion euros in the coming years,” Mujacic predicts.
Read also | The Belgian government offers a generous allowance to Dutch citizens as well
Half of them also travel abroad. “Suppose it were possible for the Dutch to buy government bonds directly from an office in the Dutch government, you are still talking about that potential advantage for small savers, but it is a greater advantage for the country as a whole. Then you keep a large sum annually in your country.
To an economist, the choice makes sense. “If I were the new finance minister, that would be one of the first actions I would take.”
Edin Mojacic also shares other plans if he becomes Finance Minister. You can hear it all on our daily podcast Macro with boot and mojich.
