Do you want to invest 1 million euros in 2026? It can be intimidating to start investing with such an amount. Yet, this money must absolutely be invested to grow.
How to approach it in very concrete terms? Once you have built up a precautionary savings buffer to cover unforeseen expenses, you should set aside money in capital-protected investments to finance your short-term projects. The remainder, intended to fund all your medium- and long-term plans, must be invested.
Which assets can you turn to in order to value 1,000,000 euros? Which investments should you subscribe to when you want to invest 1 million euros? All our explanations to get started and grow your wealth over time.
Investing 1 million euros in club deals
What is a club deal, a solution for investing 1,000,000 euros?
There are several categories of club deals that allow investment in a wide range of assets. Thus, some club deals enable investment in company shares such as Anaxago, for example; others in real estate assets like Alderan, others still in atypical assets such as artworks like Matis. The basic principle remains the same: investors pool their funds to acquire shares of an asset they could not obtain alone, whether it be a company, a building, or a painting.
The assets targeted by club deals are quite specific. In real estate, these are most often commercial real estate, assets intended for the hospitality sector, sometimes residential real estate, commercial premises, etc. In terms of investments in companies, club deals are generally specialized in private equity and are used to fund the development of promising TPE-PME.
Regarding atypical assets, we can present assets selected by Matis, blue-chip artworks from major names in contemporary art such as Warhol or Soulages. All these assets contribute to diversifying your wealth.
The entry ticket for real estate and private equity club deals is generally set at 100,000 euros. However, some club deals show a higher minimum investment. A club deal focused on atypical assets may be accessible around 20,000 euros.
The investment horizon for a club deal is often a minimum of 5 years, but can be much longer, or shorter for certain specific assets. Note, however, that there will be no surprises: entry and exit dates are defined in advance of the project. Be careful to select club deals whose investment horizon matches yours, as the liquidity provided is locked during this period.
What are the advantages of investing 1 million euros in a club deal?
The main advantage of these club deals is the ability to invest in assets that are not easily accessible, alongside reputable players who strictly select the assets. Indeed, a club deal is most often offered by private players: private bankers, wealth managers, banks, etc. Their work begins with a careful selection of assets, continues with the collection of funds from capital providers, and finally the acquisition of the assets. Investors in club deals become shareholders of the created legal structure, typically a simplified joint-stock company, which itself becomes owner or manager of the desired asset. Sometimes, an investment vehicle is created, allowing you to invest in a share of the asset via the acquisition of convertible bonds.
Note that investing in a club deal can sometimes allow you to shelter your shares in your PEA or PEA-PME, which enables you to benefit from complete exemption from capital gains tax after more than 5 years of holding the plan. Make sure to choose the best PEA to obtain the most favorable fees and the best products and services to invest successfully in a PEA.
What return can you expect when you want to invest 1 million euros in a club deal?
For real estate club deals whose activity is based on asset management, the income will be mainly rental, and the yield will generally range between 5% and 10% per year. For club deals focused on private equity investments, the return will depend on the potential capital gain realized upon sale, with a relatively high target return around 10%. For club deals focused on atypical assets, the yield will be more like 15% to 20%.
Note that regardless of the assets, risks are present, the target return is not guaranteed, and capitals are not guaranteed.
Investing 1 million euros with a Lombard loan
What is a Lombard loan? Is it possible to take a Lombard loan of one million euros?
When you own substantial financial assets, it is possible to take out a particularly advantageous loan: the Lombard loan. It is a loan secured by collateral on securities, i.e., a release on asset value on collateral such as funds held in investments (life insurance, notably Luxembourg life insurances or securities accounts, for example).
This form of borrowing is, however, reserved for highly capitalized clients who hold several hundreds of thousands of euros or several million euros in financial assets. This particularly attractive leverage tool allows you to finance all of your projects.
Investing 1 million euros with a Lombard loan, how does it work?
The Lombard loan rests on the pledge of part of the assets held to borrow a percentage of the value of the pledged assets. Suppose you lock 1,000,000 euros in a Luxembourg life insurance policy (i.e., they are pledged) and you can in exchange obtain a loan equal to 50% of the pledged amounts, i.e., 500,000 euros.
This money, since it is borrowed, is not considered income, and you will not pay tax on it at the time you finance your project. The trade-off is that you will have to pay the loan’s interest throughout the duration of the loan, ideally at rates lower than the returns from your investment. At the end of the loan term, you will need to repay it in one lump sum. It is possible to use a Lombard loan to finance a real estate project, but also, for example, to leverage investments in the stock market.
Example of a real estate investment with a Lombard loan on pledged 1 million euros
Let us take the example of a pied-à-terre investment in Cannes via a Lombard loan on a life insurance policy with a balance of one million euros. You buy a pied-à-terre for 500,000 euros in Cannes with a Lombard loan at a rate of 3%. You purchase your property while retaining ownership of your life insurance (though the funds are blocked), which allows you to keep the gains from this investment. Suppose you want to repay your Lombard loan after 15 years and your life insurance investment of one million euros has yielded an average of 7% per year during this period.
The 1,000,000 euros invested at 7% interest for 15 years has earned a little over 1,759,000 euros. You therefore have 2,759,032 euros after 15 years,
You then have, not counting the 3% interest paid over the entire loan term, 2,759,032 euros, which once accounting for the borrowed sum corresponds to 2,259,032 euros. Of course, you will need to subtract the interest paid during the 15 years. If you had paid cash for your pied-à-terre 500,000 euros without using a Lombard loan and kept the remaining 500,000 euros in a life insurance at 7% for 15 years, you would end up with only 1,379,516 euros, i.e., a gain difference of 879,516 euros, a differential much greater than the interest on the Lombard loan.
What are the risks of an investment with a Lombard loan on 1,000,000 euros?
Note that the Lombard loan is a very attractive solution for financing projects for those who have significant sums invested in financial assets, but it is not a magic solution and one should be aware of the risks.
Indeed, in the event of poor investments, the gains from the pledged investment might not offset the interest to be paid. In the worst case, significant losses could force you to sell the entire investment to repay your loan, without managing to cover the borrowed capital and the cost of credit.
We should emphasize that this risk remains fairly hypothetical since lenders ensure that the pledged investment can cover the loan. In the vast majority of cases, the Lombard line generates cash flow for your expenses and allows you to leverage without having to dispose of the assets.
Investing 1 million euros in pleasure investments: wine, art, cars, jewelry, and watches
What is a pleasure investment?
Finally, when you have one million euros of wealth, you can also allocate a portion of your capital to pleasure investments. 10% maximum seems prudent given the risk associated with speculation. These are diversification assets that you can enjoy. So, crypto and gold bars are out. Instead, think of precious jewelry and watches, collectible cars, works of art, rare books, even comics, wine—assets you can wear, drive, look at, read, drink, and simply enjoy. That is their main advantage.
What are the advantages of pleasure investments when you have one million euros to invest?
The other advantage of pleasure investments is their total decoupling from stock markets. This type of asset can generate stable and favorable returns. If carefully chosen, they can even appreciably increase in value over time, with an average annual performance of 5% to 20% per year. For wine investments, beyond buying bottles, it is possible to invest in shares of viticultural property groups (GFV), which will yield on average between 3% to 5% per year, and also allow you to obtain bottles from your vineyard.
The taxation can also be advantageous for all these precious items, with an exemption from capital gains tax on goods valued under 5,000 euros. The capital gain realized by a private individual is subject to a flat tax of 6.5% (CRDS included). Also note that there exists the regime for the taxation of capital gains on the sale of movable property, i.e., a taxation of 36.2% on the gain (social contributions included) after one year of holding. But note that in this case you benefit from a 5% annual allowance for possession beyond the 2nd year, which can be particularly advantageous.
GFVs, for their part, allow a 30% flat allowance for incomes under 15,000 €/year. It is also possible with viticultural property groups to generate a rural property deficit to offset potential urban property profits. The value of the shares representing such contributions results in a 75% exemption from real estate wealth tax (IFI) up to €101,897 and 50% beyond this threshold. The same applies to exemptions from gift and inheritance taxes.
What are the risks of pleasure investments when you want to invest 1,000,000 euros?
Be careful, because pleasure investments are indeed investments meant to be enjoyed, but the risk of capital loss is significant. It is not always obvious in advance which car model or watch or which contemporary artist will appreciate the most over time. Not all assets will appreciate in the same way, and the informed advice of an expert in the field is precious for selecting the most promising investments.
There is also the matter of preservation. To maintain value, and even to increase it, your investment must be in good condition, and you must watch for signs of wear and potential damage from use. Also beware of the cost of insurance these assets may require.
Finally, note that these are illiquid investments. You cannot sell a 1955 Porsche in two clicks like a large-cap US stock. This is a long-term logic that applies to this type of investment. Better to take that into account before investing.
Summary table: 3 placements to invest a million euros in 2026 according to Café de la Bourse
| Types of investment | Assets involved | Entry ticket | Investment horizon | Target return | Risk / Liquidity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real estate club deals | Commercial/office real estate, hotels, business premises, residential | ~100 000 € | 5 years minimum (entry/exit dates defined) | 5% to 10% per year | Real risk, capital not guaranteed, low liquidity |
| Private equity club deals | Non-listed TPE-PME, growing companies | ~100 000 € | 5 years minimum | Around 10% (via capital gain) | High risk, high illiquidity |
| Club deals in atypical assets | Blue-chip artworks (Warhol, Soulages, etc.) | ~20 000 € | Long term (≥ 5 years) | 15% to 20% | High risk, very low liquidity |
| Lombard credit | Leverage on life insurance / pledged financial assets | Reserved for high net worth (≥ several hundred k€ of financial assets) | Variable (often long-term) | Depends on the yield of the pledged asset (e.g., 7% in the example) | Leverage risk, market dependence |
| Pleasure investments | Art, watches, jewelry, collectible cars, wine, rare books | Variable (often > €10,000) | Long term | 5% to 20% per year | Very illiquid, risk of capital loss |
How to invest 1 million euros successfully regardless of your investor profile? Our advice
The essential thing when you want to invest one million on the financial markets remains, as when investing 10,000 euros or 100,000 euros, to respect your investor profile. You must subscribe to investments that suit you, that are appropriate for your investment profile, in line with your risk tolerance, and aligned with your values.
But investing 1,000,000 euros can be a daunting task. Do not hesitate to delegate the management of your capital to a third party, for example to a wealth management advisor. Especially since with such sums come tax-related issues, and tax optimization of your investments can help you increase the return. Finally, depending on the stage of life you are in, you may also be concerned with gifts (to help your children settle in, for example) or with estate planning, delicate issues that should be handled professionally when large sums are at stake to optimize the transfers you want to arrange.
To keep in mind: Café de la Bourse’s advice for investing 1,000,000 euros in 2026
Investing 1 million euros in 2026 requires a controlled diversification between club deals, leverage solutions, and diversification investments. These strategies involve risk, liquidity, and taxation considerations that must not be underestimated. In this context, obtaining the assistance of a professional in wealth management is strongly recommended to structure your investment effectively.
All our information is, by its nature, generic. It does not take your personal situation into account and does not constitute personalized recommendations for the execution of transactions and cannot be considered financial investment advice, nor any incentive to buy or sell financial instruments. The reader is solely responsible for using the information provided, and no recourse against the publisher Cafedelabourse.com is possible. The publisher Cafedelabourse.com cannot be held liable in case of error, omission, or untimely investment.
