Prevent your savings from becoming less valuable

Rise and fall at the highest savings rates

This week, interest on a withdrawable savings account fell sharply. Instead of 0.3%, you now get 0.22% on your Big Bank bank savings. The highest savings rate is now in the hands of Renault Bank Direct from France. There you now get 0.25%.

At the same time, many European banks increased the interest on savings on deposits. For example, you now get 1.15% interest in Czech J&T bank if you put your savings into a 3-year deposit.

To get the highest savings rates, you have to look across borders these days. Fortunately, saving abroad has become a lot easier with the advent of savings platforms, such as Raisin. You can easily open one or more savings accounts in Europe with a personal account. Fully Dutch and covered under the European Deposit Guarantee Scheme.

Negative interest on savings in the Netherlands

If we look at Dutch banks, the trend of savings rates is still falling. At the beginning of this year, ABN AMRO and ING set the interest rates for a freely withdrawable savings account at 0% for all customers.

The wealthy have always been accustomed to an interest-free savings account. They now have to fear the negative savings interest rate. In most Dutch banks you pay -0.5% with a balance of €100,000.

What will savings interest do in 2022?

Now that mortgage interest rates continue to rise, the savings banks are watching with alarm. Can we also expect an increase in savings benefits this year?

High inflation is currently causing interest rates to rise all over the world. But when mortgage interest mainly follows the financial markets, savings interest is determined by the policy of the European Central Bank (ECB). And the savings banks there are still paying -0.5% to store excess cash.

The European Central Bank is keeping key interest rates low to stimulate the economy. However, this has become less desirable due to sky-high inflation. Central banks in the United Kingdom and the United States, among others, have cut interest rates this year to cool the economy.

The ECB may also follow a rate move in 2022. According to Klaas Knot, head of De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) and also an ECB policymaker, this will be in the fourth quarter of this year at the earliest. Until then, savings rates are expected to remain low and fall further.

Tips to save with a higher return

In the meantime, your savings are worth less and less, due to high inflation and possibly a negative savings interest rate. Here are some tips for saving with a higher return.

● Open a freely withdrawable savings account with a savings specialist (up to 0.35%)
● View the range of savings deposits with several interesting European banks (up to 1.15%)
● Choose to save with terms, such as monthly savings or savings insurance. (up to 2.00%)
● Or choose to invest if you wish and you can risk part of your savings