Not all savers are willing to take risks to make their savings profitable, especially at a time when economic uncertainty and the specter of recession threaten Europe.
But the truth is that doing nothing is not an alternative either. With inflation skyrocketing (last November inflation in Spain stood at 6.8%), leaving money in a checking account without remuneration is synonymous with losing money, say experts from the financial product comparator HelpMyCash.com , who have analyzed which are the best paid accounts at the end of the year.
The rise in interest rates by the European Central Bank should have been a shock to savers. Logically, if the ECB increases the price of money, the interest on accounts and deposits should rise and savers should earn more interest. However, "those who have noticed the rise in rates the most have been those with mortgages, whose variable loans have skyrocketed in recent months," they explain in HelpMyCash.
The reality is that the main banks have not yet passed on the rate hikes to their savers. Instead, to retain savings, they have tried to promote the sale of guaranteed funds, whose assets have skyrocketed in recent months. This year, the assets of the guaranteed fixed-return funds have increased by 106%, according to Inverco.
So where can you find profitability without resorting to investment products? Online banks have become an oasis for the most conservative savers. The struggle to capture liabilities has moved to the Internet, where digital banking operates. These entities have been in charge of encouraging the market to attract the attention of the most conservative savings.
Following the rise in rates, banks have been pushing up the remuneration of their accounts, adjusting them to the context of each moment and to the movements of the competition. At the moment, "the best offers are between 1 and 2% APR", explain HelpMyCash sources.
The account that leads the ranking is the Sabadell Online Account, which in recent months has been chaining promotions. Right now, new bank customers who open the digital account will receive a return of 2% APR for a whole year (for a balance of up to 30,000 euros) just for contracting it, without further requirements.
Several banks have placed their accounts somewhat below. Bank Norwegian and MyInvestor pay 1.25% APR on their remunerated accounts, although the latter limits its profitability to the first year and the first 30,000 euros, like Sabadell. Renault Bank pays 1.21% APR, although the bank could update its offer on January 11.
The Raisin online platform also offers some of the best paying accounts of the moment. For example, it gives access to the Klarna savings account that rents at 1.05% APR with a balance limit of 95,000 euros. The Lea Bank account, also available through Raisin, has a return of 1.06% APR for a maximum balance of 100,000 euros. The first entity is protected by the Swedish deposit guarantee fund and the second, by the Norwegian one.
Those who want to get an interest higher than 2% APR without the need to link can resort to deposits. They have less flexibility, but they pay more. In the short term, the Facto Account of BFF Bank stands out. Your clients can open deposits for three months at 2.02% APR and six months and one year at 2.52% APR. The minimum amount is 5,000 euros per deposit.
Raisin markets some of the most profitable European deposits. The one-year deposit of the Belgian bank CKV at 2.90% APR or the twelve-month deposit of the Italian entity Banca Privata Leasing, which has the same profitability, stand out. Both can be contracted from 5,000 euros.
