the rate battle is relaunched – L’Express

After years of lean times, savers who invested in euro funds are smiling again. In the past, this guaranteed asset offered within life insurance had suffered from falling interest rates. It’s now ancient history. Insurers have returned to favorable market conditions, which allows them to obtain higher performances and encourages them to attract capital to invest cheaply. The specialized site Good Value for Money therefore anticipates an average return in 2024, compared to 2023, of 2.50%. But some contracts show much better results.

To boost the rate served to savers, many companies are dipping into their reserves patiently built up over the past years. The fact of having – or not – this nest egg is a decisive factor. Thus, those belonging to banking groups are among the best bidders at the start of the year. Sogecap (Société Générale) thus displays an average rate of 3.31%, Cardif (BNP Paribas) is at 3.03% and Predica (Crédit Agricole Assurances) at 2.80%. Be careful however, these averages can hide strong disparities from one contract to another, those who are no longer on the market tending to see their remuneration neglected.

Mutuals also seem to be doing well. Traditionally in the lead, Garance is no exception this year with a rate of 3.50%, followed by MACSF which delivers 3.10%. “We collected 361 million euros net of withdrawals in 2023 from our euro fund, which allowed us to invest in the markets at much higher rates,” underlines Guillaume Rosenwald, retirement savings director at MACSF. The MIF rebounded to 3.05% on its multi-support contracts.

Despite these pleasant surprises, it is not time for celebration for all policyholders. Some players traditionally in the first quartile have disappointed. This is particularly the case for the Afer contract, insured by Abeille Assurances. A leading savers association with its 751,000 members, it suffers from its lack of reserves and its size. The rate of 2.22% announced by its president Gérard Bekerman pales in comparison. Same thing for its rival Gaipare, as well as for Asac-Fapes, and their insurer partner Allianz Vie, with respective yields of 2.30% and 2.10%. Worse, the predominantly real estate euro fund Sécurité Pierre Euro, from Suravenir and Primonial, announced a zero rate, due to the tertiary real estate crisis.