Retail term deposit beta dynamics in modern Eurozone

This dissertation analyzes the transmission of monetary policy to household retail term deposits across twenty euro area countries from 2005 to 2025, with particular focus on the post-2022 tightening cycle. Using country-level time-series regressions of short-term deposit rates against policy benchmarks (EONIA and €STR), the study estimates deposit betas to capture the short-run sensitivity of deposit pricing to monetary policy shifts. Results show that pass-through weakened markedly during the negative interest rate regime but re-emerged strongly after 2022, with estimated betas ranging from 0.15 to 0.78 across countries. This dispersion highlights persistent cross-country heterogeneity despite a common monetary framework. Structural indicators such as banking sector concentration and the share of household term deposits do not exhibit consistent global explanatory power, but distinct national clusters emerge, suggesting that institutional and behavioral factors shape deposit responsiveness. The findings underscore that euro area monetary transmission through the deposit channel remains uneven, with implications for policy symmetry, banking strategy, and financial stability.