AMAFI 2026 Barometer: A Sharp Decline in Equity Investment

AMAFI has published its 2026 Barometer of Savings Taxation and Corporate Financing, which assesses France’s attractiveness in terms of financing the economy and tracks how this has evolved over time. This new edition highlights a reversal of the momentum that began in 2018 to strengthen the attractiveness of equity financing in France.

A worrying decline in publicly traded shareholdings

Since 2023, households’ direct holdings of listed stocks have declined significantly. In one year, they have fallen from 5% to just over 4% of their financial assets. This sharp decline contrasts with savers’ stated interest in stocks.

A decline in the cost competitiveness of equity financing

The reforms launched in 2018 had brought France closer to European standards, but several measures taken since 2025 have reversed that trend. For example, to pay out a net income of 100 to a shareholder with an intermediate income level, a French company must generate a gross profit of 228 in 2026, compared with 204 in 2024. The figure is 190 in Germany and 207 in the United Kingdom.

These developments are taking place at a time when there is a considerable need for capital related to innovation, transitions, industry, and defense.

In light of these findings, AMAFI calls for sustained support for equity investment through a tax system that is transparent, predictable, and tailored to the long-term risk taken. This entails, in particular, maintaining the single flat-rate tax and better mobilizing long-term savings to finance businesses—notably by revitalizing the PEA (Equity Savings Plan) and developing, as a complement to the pay-as-you-go system, a capitalization component in pension financing.

View the AMAFI 2026 Barometer