Page 31 - Monaco Economy 127

NAUTIBANQUE: “We finance around 60 ships a year on the

Côte d’Azur”

By Sophia Bernardi et Sophie Marquet
How do you finance the acquisition of a yacht? Adrien Collot, Director of Nautibanque at the Caisse
d’Epargne Côte d’Azur, explains the ins and outs of yachting finance.

What nautical projects do you mainly finance? through a leasing offer, whether on behalf of does a maritime mortgage work? Is it possible,
(Acquisition of a motorboat or sailboat, new or a natural or legal person. We also intervene with this option, to have the entire value of
used, for individuals/companies, for personal in traditional financing on used boats up to the boat financed?
use or charter/timeshare)? 10-15 years old depending on the maturity of When we finance with depreciable credit,
As part of the Caisse d’Epargne Côte d’Azur’s the desired loan. we are frequently required to back the
affinity approach, we have created a brand, outstanding amount on a maritime mortgage
Nautibanque, the objective of which is to be What is your customer profile? How would (taking the boat as collateral for the credit)
the preferred banking partner for the maritime you qualify the Monégasque and Côte d’Azur and, depending on the nature of the project
sector. To answer your question, we have clientèle in terms of volume and quality? and the borrower, even with this type of
two businesses: providing finance for yachts; We do not have a previously identified profile; guarantee, it is of use to constitute a
and support for professional development. we finance all types of yachtsmen and women contribution of the order of 20%. During a
Therefore, one team is devoted to those even if, overall, the Riviera and Monégasque financial lease, the boat is the property of
wishing to finance the acquisition of a boat, region does have a lot of yacht owners who BPCE Lease, which offers it for exclusive
a berth or refit work. A second team focuses are business leaders and executives. use to the client beneficiary of the contract
exclusively on professionals in the sector: boat through a rental. The contribution is then
dealers, maritime rental companies, shipyards, Would you recommend consumer credit for formalised through the first increased rent
port operators, equipment manufacturers, the purchase of small used boats or jet skis? and can allow, depending on the amount, the
shipbuilders, fuel suppliers and so on. Yes, depreciable credit financing is suitable for rental charge or the duration of the credit to
second-hand units, leasing being intended for be adapted.
What financing methods are available? the acquisition of new or very recent second-
With regard to finance for pleasure yachts, we hand boats, small or large in size. If you do not have the necessary funds
have effectively set the course for dedicated to become an owner, can projects also be
support for almost three years now, with a How many projects do you finance per year financed, as for a car, on a hire purchase
range of financing offers in depreciable credit in Monaco and the Côte d’Azur? And to the basis?
or leasing that meet the demands of French, tune of how much? We do not practice long-term leasing on this
Monégasque and European tax payers. This Overall, we finance around 60 ships per year type of asset.
makes it possible to acquire a new or second- on the Côte d’Azur, plus five or six in Monaco.
hand boat equipped for trade or pleasure. It is said that hire purchase agreements,
Driven by the types of requests we receive in Is it easy to obtain a bank loan for this type available on the Spanish and Italian markets,
our region, we mainly finance new motor yachts of project? What are the conditions and how are subject to a more attractive VAT regime?
No, the regulations have been standardised
at European level. However, there was a time
when leasing was eligible for a VAT reduction,
which made it possible to reduce it by 50% but
this practice has no longer been possible since
1 December 2020.

How can tax be reduced when buying a boat?
With a French leasing contract?
There remains to this day a rule of VAT
exemption for yachts and large pleasure craft
operating at least 70% of the time on the high
© Depositphotos/ v-strelok (place of operation, crew on board, equipped
seas. They can benefit, under several conditions
for trading, charter operation), from a partial or
total exemption from VAT on the repayments
and refuelling costs.

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