Deposits of Portuguese families increased by 637 million euros in October, returning to a record high of close to 169 billion euros. Despite this growth, the equity ratio remains in order. About half of this money was in the account.
According to the Bank of Portugal on Friday, at the end of October, the Portuguese had deposits in the amount of 168.7 billion euros. This value represents an increase of 6.9% over the same month last year and 637 million euros compared to 168.2 billion that was deposited in national banks a month earlier.
The weight of the money that remains in order increases. “Demand deposits accounted for 47% of the total volume of deposits of individuals, whereas five years ago they corresponded to 30%,” underlines Banco de Portugal. The change, which the regulator attributes to “the context of the low interest rates seen in recent years, and the ease with which banks have financed themselves through the Eurosystem.”
After all, Portuguese depositors had 88.8 billion euros in deposits maturing at the end of October, with 79.99 billion euros remaining in their checking account.
Interest paid by banks on depositors’ money has fallen to near zero in recent years, reflecting the decline in the European Central Bank (ECB) interest rate to zero and Euribor to negative values.
In September, national banks paid 0.04% on new deposit operations. This is a new all-time low below the 0.05% paid in August.
