In 2020, the amount of savings of Dutch households in the bank grew to an all-time high. The main reason for this increase is the coronavirus crisis. Savings held at Dutch banks are automatically and legally protected by the Dutch Deposit Guarantee up to €100,000 per person, per bank. This amount is still sufficient to fully protect about 98% of all savers.
At the end of 2020, Dutch households held over €487 billion in their bank and savings accounts. This means that last year the amount of money in checking and savings accounts increased by €42 billion. The total savings deposits of Dutch households have steadily increased over the past years. Compared to 2020, the amount has doubled.
The Dutch Deposit Guarantee has been operational since 1979. The volume of savings guaranteed by the Dutch Deposit Guarantee has also increased over the years. The amount of guaranteed savings is the amount on accounts up to €100,000 and also takes into account savings held with Dutch banks by customers in other European countries.
Guaranteed savings have grown from around €360 billion in 2008 to €560 billion in 2021. An increase of more than 50% since the financial crisis. Due to the coronavirus crisis, there was a further surge in 2020 and guaranteed savings grew by 9%.
Despite the overall growth in savings, the savings accounts of most customers at Dutch banks are still fully protected. This is due to the relatively high coverage limit of €100,000. The average amount per account has increased from €7,080 (2009) to €9,740 (2020) and over 98% of Dutch savings accounts have a balance of less than €100,000. This also gives a good indication of the protection per person. The conclusion is that almost all savers are fully protected.
Since 2016, banks have been building up a deposit guarantee fund protecting savers and banks in the event of bank failure. The fund thus contributes to the solidity of the Dutch Deposit Guarantee and fosters social trust. As the total amount of savings grows, the size of the fund must also increase. For this purpose, banks pay additional contributions. In this way, DNB ensures that the size of the deposit guarantee fund remains at the right level and all Dutch people can be certain that the protection of their money in the bank has been taken care of.
DNB administers the Dutch Deposit Guarantee. Please also see our other pages with more information.
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