Household Debt: Why We Need to Increase Transparency

Article published in Les Echos, November 18, 2025

Half of French households go into overdraft at least once a year. Banks must be able to price risk correctly, regardless of the borrower’s level of debt. Frédéric Cherbonnier explains.

Amid the cacophony of parliamentary debates, one issue was briefly blown out of proportion: the government was allegedly going to ban authorized bank overdrafts! This was a misleading claim regarding the simple transposition of a European directive passed almost unanimously by MEPs—including members of La France insoumise, the very group that started this rumor. The aim was simply to extend the rules governing consumer credit and overdrafts exceeding 200 euros to small overdrafts, in order to hold banks more accountable and better...

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