Life insurance, PEA, SCPI… Some investments make your banker’s heart beat faster. While others are largely ignored. To better serve your interest? Or his?
What are the investments most often highlighted by your banker? It is to answer this question, among others, that the Financial Markets Authority has been organizing mystery shopping campaigns for several years.
During these visits, extras put themselves in the shoes of a particular client to assess business practices account managers from the 11 main network banks in France. And the results are edifying.
523 business proposals
In 2022, the AMF thus carried out 210 mystery visits. On the occasion of which, the bank advisers issued 523 commercial proposals. Does that sound like a lot to you? However, it is 27% less than in the previous campaign in 2018.
On average, bank advisors still offered 2.8 products to each mystery visitor. And it is clear that some placements come up (much) more frequently than others.
As in previous campaigns, life insurance remains by far the envelope most promoted by bankers. More than 67% personal advisors spontaneously offer it to their prospects.
Next comes the Equity Savings Plan (PEA), which is offered to 44% profiles that are “averse” to risk and 48% profiles who are ready to take risks to boost their savings.
Savings: what your bank adviser will now have to ask you
Full box for PER and SCPI
On the third step of the podium, we find the Retirement Savings Plan (PER), which the bankers recommended to 30% prospects. Since the creation of this product on October 1, 2019, retirement savings have experienced strong growth.
As proof: mystery visitors with high risk aversion were offered 7 times more of PER in 2022 (28%) than PERP in 2018 (4%).
Conversely, the securities account lost ground once again. This placement was recommended in only 7% cases for risk-averse profiles. Against 17% cases in 2018.
Stone-paper also has its winners and losers in the eyes of your banker. All risk profiles combined, real estate investment companies (SCPI) were spontaneously recommended by advisers in 24% visits.
Undertakings for collective investment in real estate (OPCI), by contrast, were offered in only 3% visits for risk-ready profiles in 2022. While in 2018 advisors recommended it in 23% cases.
Financial advice: the AMF points to still “problematic” practices of banks
Trackers struggling
At the bottom of the pack are ETFs (or Trackers), which were offered by advisors in less than 1 in 100 cases. A surprising figure, because these funds have been growing in popularity with individuals for several years.
Two possible explanations. The first is that the year 2022 has been very eventful on the financial markets. The CAC40, for example, lost almost 10% in 12 months. The second is that ETFs are very little charge. In other words, this financial product brings almost nothing to your bank.
Do you find this reasoning a bit cynical? And yet. Your banker actually has a double hat. That is to say, he must not only advise you, but also reach the business goals fixed by the bank.
The problem? These two activities are sometimes difficult to reconcile. “This year, I am asked in particular to place 700,000 to 800,000 euros in the financial markets, for 1 to 1.2 million euros payments on life insurance”, confided to us, for example, Mélanie (1)account manager in a large French bank during a previous interview.
At the time, the young woman felt that the financial markets were “a bit too high” and therefore wanted to wait for a drop before offering her clients to invest in the stock market. But his hierarchy decided otherwise. “I was finally asked to achieve half of this objective in the first quarter. So right now my duty to advise comes up against the objectives that have been set for me “laments Melanie.
Apart from 2022, “the number of spontaneous commercial proposals made by advisors to prospects has only grown since the launch of mystery shopping campaigns in 2010, notes the AMF.
Overall, mystery shoppers still report a high level of satisfaction with bank advisors. The latter seemed to them to listen to 92%clear to 81%understandable to 90%seeking to understand their needs at 72% and competent to 85%.
Online stock market: which bank or broker to choose?
(1) Its name has been changed.