Livret A: An increase to 1.7%, yielding 15.60 euros per year for the average saver

The Livret A interest rate will rise from 1.5% to 1.7% on August 1, marking the first increase since February 2023. Announced on July 15 by Economy Minister Roland Lescure, this modest increase at least offsets the return of inflation without disrupting the hierarchy of investment options.
 

For a saver with an average balance of 7,800 euros, the increase announced on July 15 amounts to exactly: 15.60 euros in gains over a full year, and 6.50 euros for the remainder of 2026. At the €22,950 cap, the additional amount totals €45.90 for a full year and €18.79 through December 31, according to calculations by the Cercle de l’Épargne. This is far from a purchasing-power windfall, but the symbolism matters: the rate on the French people’s favorite investment is rising for the first time in three and a half years.
 

Roland Lescure followed the recommendation of the new governor of the Bank of France, Emmanuel Moulin. The calculation formula, which combines inflation excluding tobacco and short-term interbank rates, automatically resulted in a rate of 1.7% following the rise in prices observed since March and the increase in the Ester rate in June. This decision interrupts the downward cycle that began on February 1, 2025, which had brought the yield down from 3% to 1.5%. The Sustainable and Solidarity Savings Account, which is aligned with the Livret A, is also being raised to 1.7%.
 

A €5 billion outflow must be stemmed
The current context makes this increase particularly significant. The Livret A savings account has recorded five outflows in five months since January, totaling €5 billion—an unprecedented streak, according to the Cercle de l’Épargne. Savers have shifted their funds toward life insurance, whose outstanding balance reached 2,162 billion euros at the end of May, while the Livret A account stands at 444 billion euros for 58 million account holders. A limited increase of 0.2 percentage points is expected to result in only a moderate rebound in deposits, and this is likely intentional: the government has no interest in encouraging households—whose savings rate already reached 17.9% of disposable income in the first quarter—to save more at the expense of consumption.
 

The impact on the financial sector is significant. On an outstanding balance of 444 billion euros, an additional 0.2 percentage points in interest represents an annual cost of approximately 880 million euros, including 528 million for the Caisse des Dépôts, which centralizes 60 percent of the funds used to finance public housing. The banks, which retain the remaining 40% to lend to businesses and local governments, absorb the balance.
 

The LEP remains at 2.5%, the gap narrows
The Livret d'épargne populaire, reserved for low-income households (reference taxable income below 23,028 euros for a single person), retains its 2.5% rate, even though strict application of the formula would have resulted in a lower rate—around 2.2%, according to the Banque de France. However, the advantage is shrinking: the gap between the LEP and the Livret A has narrowed from 1 percentage point to 0.8 percentage points.
 

The next adjustment will take place on February 1, 2027, in the midst of the presidential campaign. It will then be politically difficult to lower the rate, regardless of how inflation evolves between now and then.