Alternative investment types
Mutual funds and treasury bills earn attention of investors, while deposits are in decline
The assets of the four Mutual Fund Management Companies (AEDAK) that are subsidiaries of the Greek systemic banks increased by 1.8 billion euros in the first quarter of 2024.
This is indicative of the potential of the market and the rise shown by both foreign and domestic bond and equity mutual funds.
Inflows since the beginning of the year have reached €1.4 billion, while the valuation of mutual assets increased by €400 million, bringing the total assets of the four AEDAK to €14.3 billion based on the valuation at the end of March. The rise in mutual fund assets recorded in the first quarter of the year comes on the back of inflows of €3.2 billion in 2023.
Most of the new inflows are linked to the target maturity mutual funds promoted by the banks, which ensure a dividend yield close to or slightly above 2%. The products became known in the last year and a half, mainly as an antidote to the low interest rates of term deposits, but now they have established themselves as an alternative investment option for low-risk investors.
In addition to the mutual funds, another €675 million has been placed by “micro-investors” in issues of treasury bills (since last September, when the relevant option was opened), achieving returns of 3.75% based on the interest rate of the last issue.
The maximum registration limit for individuals is €15,000 with the possibility of participating in each issue.
At the same time, the placements of individuals in T-bills through the secondary market are estimated at close to €3 billion, according to banking sources, an amount almost three times that of last September.
It should be noted that the shift to alternative investments is also attributed to the decrease in deposits that has been recorded since last December and which, as far as households are concerned, amounts to €2.1 billion based on the latest data for the end of February. In total, household deposits amounted to 144.5 billion euros.
