Dutch savers face €7.6 billion loss in purchasing power amid high inflation

Dutch savers collectively lost approximately 7.6 billion euros in purchasing power on their savings in 2024, according to a press release by the savings platform Raisin. Despite stabilizing interest rates, persistent inflation continued to erode the value of savings, with an average loss of 1.8 percent on freely accessible savings accounts and 0.7 percent on term deposits.

Efforts by the European Central Bank (ECB) to curb inflation kept its main interest rate at 4.00 percent early in 2024, before settling at 3.00 percent later in the year. However, inflation remained higher than expected, averaging 3.3 percent for the year.

Interest rates on freely accessible savings accounts in the Netherlands, which hold the majority of household savings, reached their highest level since 2013. According to De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), these rates averaged 1.47 percent throughout the year, while rates on term deposits stood slightly higher at 2.53 percent. Both figures fell short of inflation, leaving savers with diminished purchasing power.

Of the 483 billion euros in total Dutch savings, 391 billion euros is held in freely accessible savings accounts. With interest rates lagging behind inflation, these accounts saw a collective purchasing power loss of 7.6 billion euros in 2024.

The erosion of savings value has been a persistent trend in recent years. In 2022, the average saver lost 9.1 percent in purchasing power on freely accessible savings accounts. Over the past five years, savers have seen a cumulative 16.5 percent decline in the value of freely accessible savings, compared to a 10.2 percent loss for term deposits over the same period.

Jasper Berkhout, a researcher at Raisin, emphasized the need for savers to be proactive. “In 2024, the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) noted a lack of competition in the savings market. As a result, too many people settle for low interest rates. Inflation continues to erode savings each year. Savers must stay active, as higher rates are available in the market,” he said.

In the press release, Eelco Habets, Raisin’s general manager for the Netherlands, outlined specific steps for savers to mitigate losses: “First, keep only essential funds in your checking account. Second, consider opening an online savings account with higher rates, either in the Netherlands or another European country. Finally, segment your savings—funds you can spare for longer periods should be placed in term deposits with fixed, higher rates.”