MNI BRIEF: EU Plan To Boost Retail Flows Into Markets

The European Commission will present plans on Tuesday to boost retail investment in EU financial market instruments such as shares, bonds and mutual funds, proposing a framework for savings and investments accounts, EC documents showed.

The plan provides states with a blueprint for SIAs, drawing on best practices from those EU states and third countries which have already implemented SIA-style accounts, in order to boost retail participation in EU capital markets and so boost economic growth and job creation. 

The EC encourages states to make the SIAs more attractive by providing incentives such as tax deductions or making the income from the assets in the accounts tax free. It also calls on states to ensure that the accounts enjoy the most favourable tax treatment of any asset class. (See MNI INTERVIEW: Digital Euro Risks Failure-Ex Bank Of Spain Gov)

The EU has one of the highest savings rates in the world, reaching 14.7% of disposable income in 2024, but retail savers hold around EUR10 trillion of their wealth in bank deposits.