It is essential that the population knows the types of investments available and their advantages to avoid keeping savings in cash, where they lose value over time. Knowing and using diversified financial instruments allows not only to protect money against inflation, but also to generate additional income, thus contributing to greater financial security and improving living standards in the long term. The savings and investment possibilities available on the financial market of the Republic of Moldova were discussed at a press club meeting organized by the Independent Think Tank "Expert-Grup" in partnership with the National Bank of Moldova, IPN reports.
The president of the National Commission for Financial Markets Dumitru Budianschi stressed the importance of making use of the new savings and investment instruments. “The optional pension funds, which can emerge after the NCFM recently authorized an administrator of optional pension funds, to ensure an additional pension to the state system, can be an example for investments. Payments in these funds are voluntary, not mandatory," he stated.
According to him, the State Securities are also a safe and affordable option for investments in the Republic of Moldova. Although the capital market is not yet developed compared to other countries, there is a growing interest in diversifying savings and investment options.
The director of the central bank’s Financial Stability Department Natan Garștea said that deposit guaranteeing is one of the most important aspects that should be known when it comes to placing savings in the banking system. Now there is a deposit guarantee fund so that the people can be sure that their money is safe. Another aspect is the term for which each person makes the deposit. It varies according to the needs of each one. An equally important factor is the interest rate, which also varies from one bank to another.
Stas Madan, program director at “Expert-Grup”, presented more data on the saving behavior of the population of the Republic of Moldova based on sociological and statistical data. According to data of a survey conducted in the fall of 2023, 4 out of 10 respondents (40.7%) on average failed to save money in the last 12 months, respectively they do not have savings or investments. In particular, these are households with the lowest incomes – 50.9%, but also households from rural areas – 49%. At the same time, most of the accumulated savings are static and do not generate other income, in the absence of mechanisms to multiply savings, such as investments with positive returns. The population misses opportunities to strengthen financial security and achieve important financial goals.
The expert also presented the statistical picture of savings and financial investments made by Moldovans. According to the latest statistical data, of September 2024, the population of the Republic of Moldova deposited 71.7 billion lei in the banking system and another 0.8 billion lei in the form of savings deposits at savings and loan associations.
The press club meeting was organized with the support of the USAID Moldova project "Moldova Institutional and Structural Reforms Activity", in the context of World Savings Day.
