Livret A, LEP, LDDS, CEL... : All Savings Rates Revised Downwards In August

There was a time when the Livret A proudly sat in the wallets of the French people. Untouchable, essential, almost sacred. But the summer of 2025 looks harsh for this flagship of popular savings. While its rate is set to fall to 1.7% as of August 1st, the signals are red. In the shadows, another savings account is trying to save the day: the LEP. At a crossroads, young people, modest households, and cautious savers watch for the slightest flicker of yield.

Livret A, the great disappointment of French savers

Just open a bank statement to feel the slap: after dropping from 3% to 2.4% in February, the Livret A could fall to 1.7% on August 1st and affect your savings. No suspense here: the mechanics of the official formula, as cold as an Excel sheet, applies a cocktail of €STR rates (2.43%) and inflation (0.97%). As a result, savers are about to say goodbye to nearly 70 euros in annual interest for a fully loaded account.

And the hemorrhage is quite visible. In March, deposits only exceeded withdrawals by 400 million euros, unprecedented since 2016. Meanwhile, euro funds of life insurance and new climate savings plans are taking over. Even the Sustainable Development Savings Booklet (LDDS) is doing better, with net inflows of 610 million euros. A signal? More like an alarm.

On X, @tony_fbr_invest sums up the situation:

The Livret A rate should drop from 2.4% to 1.7% in 08/2025. The LEP rate might stay at 3.5%. To be followed.

The LEP, last bastion for modest households?

In this slump, the Popular Savings Account (LEP) appears as a shield. Reserved for modest households, it still paid 3.5% at the start of 2025. A near-heroic performance in a landscape of declining yields. Certainly, if the formula were applied mechanically, the rate would drop to 2.2%. But the governor of the Bank of France has already used his joker in February, arguing that it was necessary to “maintain a significant gap with the Livret A“.

Two scenarios dominate: a rate held at 3% (for a gap of 1.3 points) or a plan B at 2.5%. It will all depend on the political will to support the most vulnerable. With €82.8 billion in outstandings, the LEP remains the heartfelt (and rational) choice for those who are not rolling in money but want to grow some savings without fearing the stock market or bitcoin.

The dilemma is here: budgetary coherence or protection of purchasing power? The Bank of France has until July to decide.

A sacrificed generation? Young and small savers seek an outlet

The Livret A, which is an alternative to bitcoin to finance the French nuclear park, is also a family tradition: it is opened at birth, where grandma’s gifts are deposited. But for those under 21, the wind is turning. The BPCE now markets the Future Climate Savings Plan (PEAC), intended to finance green projects. A marketing gimmick or a real alternative? For now, the product remains confidential.

It’s the French people’s favorite investment, but it is not a good investment!

Mounir Laggoune – CEO of Finary

Meanwhile, small savers — those who do not read ECB reports but watch every euro — see their purchasing power erode. The CEL (Home Savings Account) now offers only 0.88% net, a fiscal alms.

And a persistent rumor is stirring online: from April 28th, Livret A accounts exceeding 23,500 euros could be frozen without income proof. Information relayed by @Mia79663222, an activist on X, which chills more than one holder.

A drop to 1.7% for the Livret A, disillusioned youth, modest households clinging to their LEP: French savings are going through a moment of truth. While stock markets wobble, gold and bitcoin soar. And if the real refuge, ultimately, was no longer to be found in the Caisse des Dépôts accounts, but elsewhere? Is it time to turn to DeFi for better investing?