Household Deposits Fall for Two Straight Months
Household deposits in mainland China fell sharply over the past two months, triggering heated discussion online over the question: “Where did the money go?”
In May, household deposits decreased by 110 billion yuan($16.26 billion), following a much larger decline of 1.94 trillion yuan ($290 billion) in April. Together, household deposits shrank by 2.05 trillion yuan ($300 billion) in April and May.
On June 12, China’s central bank released financial data for May. The data showed that in the first five months of the year, household deposits increased by 5.63 trillion yuan ($830 billion), but that was 2.67 trillion yuan ($390 billion) less than the increase recorded during the same period last year.
According to Wind data, household deposits fell by 110 billion yuan in May alone, continuing the trend seen in April, when they dropped by 1.94 trillion yuan.
Money Flows Into Non-Bank Financial Institutions
While household deposits declined, deposits held by non-bank financial institutions — including wealth management products, funds, insurance companies, and securities firms — rose for two consecutive months.
Data showed that deposits at non-bank financial institutions increased by 2.47 trillion yuan in April and 1.14 trillion yuan in May, for a combined increase of 3.61 trillion yuan over the two months.
According to a report by Southern Metropolis Daily, Yang Yewei, an analyst at Guosheng Securities, said that under pressure from employment and income, the growth rate of per capita consumer spending has fallen much more sharply than the growth rate of per capita disposable income. This suggests that people’s willingness to save remains relatively strong.
Yang said overall household savings are still increasing. However, as real estate sales continue to slow, more household savings are now appearing in the form of financial assets.
Savings Are Changing Form
“At the same time that household deposits are falling, financial assets held by households in other forms continue to increase,” Yang said.
According to his estimates, in the first quarter of 2026, household holdings of wealth management products, money market funds, bond funds, equity funds, and insurance increased year-on-year by 2.5 trillion yuan, 1.7 trillion yuan, 700 billion yuan, 400 billion yuan, and 1.9 trillion yuan, respectively. Together, these categories increased by 7.1 trillion yuan.
Yang said the decline in returns from household bank deposits has pushed more funds into non-bank asset management products. In other words, overall household savings are still rising, but the form of those savings has changed.
Topic Trends on Weibo
The topic “Where did the deposits go? Household deposits fall for two consecutive months, shrinking by more than 2 trillion yuan in total” was pushed onto Weibo’s hot-search list in recent days.
Some internet users commented that deposit rates have continued to fall, with one-year fixed deposit rates dropping below 1 percent. They said that as “money loses value in deposits,” funds are being pushed into wealth management products, bond funds, and savings-type insurance products.
Others said some households are using their funds to repay mortgages early in order to reduce pressure on daily life.
Falling Deposit Rates Reduce the Appeal of Bank Savings
In recent years, bank deposit rates in mainland China have continued to decline. This is also seen as one of the major reasons behind the slowing growth of household deposits.
Between 2025 and 2026, major state-owned banks and several joint-stock commercial banks repeatedly cut deposit rates. At present, the one-year fixed deposit rate at most banks has fallen below 1 percent, while some banks offer only around 0.8 percent. Three-year and five-year fixed deposit rates have also dropped to historic lows, far below the levels of more than 3 percent commonly seen several years ago.
At the same time, many banks have adjusted the structure of long-term deposit products. Some banks have canceled or suspended sales of five-year fixed deposits and large-denomination certificates of deposit. Among banks that still offer five-year products, the interest-rate advantage has also weakened significantly.
Large-denomination certificates of deposit, once viewed as a tool for attracting savings with higher interest rates, have also seen their rates continue to fall, while available quotas have become tighter than before.
Against the backdrop of falling interest rates, traditional bank deposits have become less attractive to households. Some funds have started flowing into bank wealth management products, money market funds, bond funds, savings-type insurance, and the stock market.
In addition, as mortgage rates have continued to fall in recent years, many residents have chosen to repay their home loans early in order to reduce interest expenses.
6/14/2026
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