Asked by an MP about the advisability of raising the ceilings of the Livret A to 30,000 euros and the LDDS to 15,000 euros, the Minister of the Economy has just published his response. There she is.
Could we consider raising the ceiling of Livret A 30,000 euros (compared to 22,950 currently) and that of the LDDS 15,000 euros (against 12000)? This is the question addressed last October to Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of Economy and Finance, by RN MP Nathalie Da Conceicao Carvalho. A question justified by current inflation and the need for citizens to have savings available to consume.
The answer came on January 30 (1). It is unequivocal: there is no question of it. Bercy advances two reasons to justify the choice of the status quo. One: the current ceilings already allow the Savings Fund (…) to have sufficient liquidity to finance social housing and projects of general interest of local authorities. For the record, the Savings fundmanaged by Caisse des Dépôts, centralizes around two thirds of the money deposited in regulated savings accounts and uses it in particular to grant very long-term loans to social landlords.
Livret A: this is how the banks and the State distribute your money
Two: (…) These ceilings are already quite high for the vast majority of households: only 10% of Livret A holders have reached the ceiling. In fact, the average balance of a Livret A was 6,351 euros at the end of 2022.
In conclusion, (…) an increase in the ceilings would result in a cost for public finances for the benefit, mainly, of well-off households, who would benefit from tax and social exemptions on a larger part of their savings, without this increase in benefits to the financing of social housing, explains Bercy.
Livret A and LEP: should their ceilings of 30,000 and 10,000 euros be raised?
At LEP the role of bulwark against rising prices
Monetary erosion, that is to say the loss of purchasing power linked to the rise in prices, affects the Livret A. As shown in the graph below, its ceiling in constant euros, that is to say adjusted for inflation, went from 27,106 euros in January 2013 22,950 euros in January 2023. Over the last five to six decades, the inflation-adjusted ceiling has always oscillated within a range of around 20,000 to 25,000 euros… and it is once again approaching its lowest level. Which could justify an increase, if the government’s desire was to maintain the protective nature of Livret A.
This role of bulwark against monetary erosion, however, has been removed from the Livret A in recent years. It is now assigned to Popular savings account, a product reserved for households with little or no tax, and therefore closed to the wealthiest households. However, as Bercy points out in its response, the LEP ceiling was raised at the end of 2023, going from 7,700 to 10,000 euros.
Should the Livret A really protect you from inflation?
(1) See the parliamentary written questions from Tuesday January 30, 2024.