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Low Deposit Yields Persist In Cyprus As Banks Sit On Excess Liquidity

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

February 11, 2026

Patient Depositors Face Minimal Returns

For depositors willing to lock their funds for over a year, even marginal interest returns can be realized. In contrast, those opting for deposits of less than one year receive negligible interest, as banks capitalize on near-zero rates for short-term liquidity. This leaves many investors scrambling for alternative fixed-income instruments that offer satisfactory performance.

Alternative Investments And The Rise Of Real Estate

Banks have not introduced many new investment products lately, effectively steering investors toward real estate, which typically offers stronger returns than traditional deposits. Time-deposit schemes launched several years ago under regulatory and political pressure once provided gradually increasing interest rates over 12, 18, and 24 months. In 2024, the average yield for long-term deposits stood slightly above 1.5 percent. Since then, high deposit rates have slipped off the policy agenda, and with liquidity levels remaining abundant, yields have settled back at historically low levels.

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Comparative Analysis: Cyprus Versus The Eurozone

The persistently low interest rates on deposits in Cyprus have positioned them among the smallest in the Eurozone, despite sporadic upward movements in time deposit rates. Data from the Central Bank indicates a gradual reversion to the subdued levels observed in 2023. For example, by December 2025, the average market rate for household time deposits up to two years had dropped to 0.75%, matching figures seen in November, compared to 1.19% in December 2024.

Market Dynamics And Future Outlook

In 2024, deposit yields were notably higher as banks were compelled, amid political pressure, to increase rates. By December 2023, the average deposit rate was 0.69% compared to a mere 0.13% in 2022. Furthermore, the rates on household deposits flagged for durations exceeding three months remained effectively stagnant at 0.07% throughout 2023 to 2025.

For corporate deposits, the average market rate currently hovers around 1.11%, down from 1.82% in December 2024 and 1.69% in December 2023. Analyses from the Central Bank also note that rates for new time deposit products continue to decline. For instance, household deposits with maturities between one and two years fell from 1.57% in December 2023 to 0.83% in December 2024 and further down to 0.49% in December 2025.

Transparent Data Limitations

It is important to acknowledge the limitations inherent in the published data by the Central Bank. The bank does not routinely disclose whether the deposits recorded are bound for one year or more versus those of shorter durations, nor does it provide the average size for each category of deposit. This lack of granularity makes it challenging for investors and industry observers to draw precise conclusions regarding the evolving deposit landscape.

The Future Forbes Realty Global Properties

by News Editor

August 24, 2026

Courts Are Still Applying Old Copyright Rules To AI

AI companies train models on enormous amounts of published material, including books, articles and academic research. Whether using that content without authors’ permission violates copyright law remains unresolved.

Much of the debate centres on fair use, which allows copyrighted material to be used without permission in certain circumstances. Courts consider factors such as the purpose of the use, how much material was involved and its impact on the original market.

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Anthropic Case Sets An Important Precedent

A major case involving Anthropic and a group of authors provided one of the clearest rulings so far. Judge William Alsup found that using copyrighted books to train AI models was lawful, comparing the process to people reading and studying literature before creating something new.

Anthropic was nevertheless ordered to pay $1.5 billion in a settlement. The penalty concerned books the company had obtained from illegal online libraries rather than the AI training itself.

For AI companies, that distinction could prove significant because it separates studying copyrighted material from directly copying it.

Competition Could Be The Key Issue

A case involving Thomson Reuters and Ross Intelligence offers a different perspective. A court ruled that Ross could not claim fair use after using Reuters’ copyrighted material to develop a competing AI-powered legal research platform.

The decision suggests courts may be less willing to consider AI training fair use when copyrighted content is used to build a product that directly competes with the original.

For authors, an unresolved question is whether AI-generated content should be considered competition for the works used to train these models.

The Law Has Yet To Catch Up

US copyright law predates generative AI by decades, leaving courts to apply old principles to new technology. Questions also remain over copyright protection for AI-generated works. In Thaler v. Perlmutter, a court ruled that material created entirely by AI cannot receive copyright protection.

Major AI companies remain involved in copyright litigation, and different courts could reach different conclusions. For now, there is no universal rule: the legality of AI training will depend on the circumstances of each case and how courts ultimately interpret copyright and fair use.