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Savings behavior of private households – PDF Download

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Financial assets of private households in Germany – Image: Xpert.Digital

At the end of 2020, the financial assets of private households* in Germany reached a new record high: German citizens have now accumulated almost 7 trillion euros. Compared to the end of the previous year, financial assets increased by around 6.7 percent. This marks the twelfth consecutive year that the wealth of Germans has risen.

How is the financial wealth composed?

The financial assets of private households are divided into cash holdings, bank deposits and securities (stocks, fixed-income securities and investment fund units) as well as claims against insurance companies and pension funds. Private households hold more than a third of their financial assets in cash and demand deposits.

Total assets of private households

The sum of monetary and tangible assets constitutes the total wealth of private households. Real estate, including land, represents the largest component of this total wealth. At the end of 2019, the assets invested by private households in residential buildings in Germany amounted to approximately €4.9 trillion. Total private tangible assets totaled about €8.98 trillion.

Financial assets of private households in Germany from 1999 to 2020 (in billion euros)

• 2020 – 6.95 trillion euros
• 2019 – 6511.5 billion euros
• 2018 – 6,037.7 billion euros
• 2017 – 5,913.4 billion euros
• 2016 – 5.604 billion euros
• 2015 – 5,361.8 billion euros
• 2014 – 5,111.7 billion euros
• 2013 – 4,879.6 billion euros
• 2012 – 4,659.3 billion euros
• 2011 – 4,447.8 billion euros
• 2010 – 4,407.7 billion euros
• 2009 – 4.387 billion euros
• 2008 – 4,077.8 billion euros
• 2007 – 4,268.7 billion euros
• 2006 – 4,050.2 billion euros
• 2005 – 4,052.7 billion euros
• 2004 – 3,822.3 billion euros
• 2003 – 3,662.2 billion euros
• 2002 – 3,452.4 billion euros
• 2001 – 3.489 billion euros
• 2000 – 3.392 billion euros
• 1999 – 3,315.8 billion euros

Survey on the level of financial knowledge among Germans – Image: Xpert.Digital

This statistic reflects the results of a survey on the level of financial knowledge among Germans. At the time of the survey, approximately 22 percent of respondents stated that they were well-informed about finance and investments.

How would you rate your level of information when it comes to financial matters and investments?

• Good – 22%
• Average – 55%
• Bad – 19%
• Not informed at all – 4%

Survey in Germany on the awareness of wealth-building providers – Image: Xpert.Digital

These data show the results of a survey in Germany on the awareness of providers related to wealth accumulation, saving, and investing. In 2017, approximately 68 percent of respondents stated that they were at least familiar with the Sparkasse (savings bank) by name.

Which of the following providers of wealth accumulation, saving and investing services are you at least familiar with by name?

• Savings bank – 68%
• Commerzbank – 62%
• Deutsche Bank – 60%
• ING DiBa – 58%
• Wüstenrot – 57%
• TargoBank – 55%
• Schwäbisch Hall Building Society – 54%
• Debeka – 46%
• comdirect – 45%
• Consorsbank – 35%
• DKB – 33%
• KfW – 29%
• Alte Leipziger – 29%
• UBS – 21%
• 1822direkt – 19%
• DZ Bank – 12%
• finanzen.net – 7%
• maxblue – 5%
• easyfolio – 2%
• De Giro – 2%
• Other – 2%
• None of them – 12%

Survey in Germany on providers considered suitable for wealth accumulation – Image: Xpert.Digital

This data shows the results of a survey in Germany regarding which providers are suitable for wealth accumulation. In 2017, around 33 percent of respondents stated that savings banks (Sparkassen) were a suitable option.

German internet users were surveyed. Households responsible for retirement planning and wealth accumulation were asked to participate. Multiple answers were possible.

Which of the following providers would you generally consider when it comes to wealth accumulation?

• Savings bank – 33%
• ING DiBa – 23%
• Commerzbank – 18%
• Schwäbisch Hall Building Society – 15%
• Wüstenrot – 15%
• Deutsche Bank – 12%
• comdirect – 11%
• Debeka – 10%
• TargoBank – 10%
• DKB – 8%
• KfW – 8%
• Consorsbank – 8%
• Alte Leipziger – 6%
• 1822direct – 5%
• DZ Bank – 3%
• De Giro – 2%
• maxblue – 2%
• finanzen.net – 2%
• UBS – 2%
• easyfolio – 1%
• None of them – 29%
• Other – 4%

Gross advertising expenditure of the German Savings Banks and Giro Association – Image: Xpert.Digital

According to Nielsen Media Research, the German Savings Banks and Giro Association (DSGV) invested around 132.8 million euros in advertising in Germany in 2020.

¹ Out-of-home advertising and cinema advertising were reported together until 2019.
² Direct mail advertising has been reported separately since 2020. Figures from previous years are only partially comparable.

OOH: Out-of-Home / outdoor advertising, e.g. large-format posters or entire rows.

Development of gross advertising expenditure of the German Savings Banks and Giro Association (DSGV) in Germany from 2016 to 2020 (in thousands of euros)

Digital

• 2016 – 39,394 thousand euros
• 2017 – 48,676 thousand euros
• 2018 – 27,880 thousand euros
• 2019 – 25,246 thousand euros
• 2020 – 30,851 thousand euros

TV

• 2016 – 43,196 thousand euros
• 2017 – 34,999 thousand euros
• 2018 – 38,099 thousand euros
• 2019 – 35,863 thousand euros
• 2020 – 36,069 thousand euros

radio

• 2016 – 8,785 thousand euros
• 2017 – 8,144 thousand euros
• 2018 – 9,912 thousand euros
• 2019 – 9,774 thousand euros
• 2020 – 11,945 thousand euros

Print

• 2016 – 44,429 thousand euros
• 2017 – 41,697 thousand euros
• 2018 – 35,116 thousand euros
• 2019 – 29,558 thousand euros
• 2020 – 34,421 thousand euros

OOH / Cinema¹

• 2016 – 18,665 thousand euros
• 2017 – 18,367 thousand euros
• 2018 – 19,614 thousand euros
• 2019 – 19,313 thousand euros

OOH¹

• 2020 – 17,024 thousand euros

Cinema¹

• 2020 – 483 thousand euros

Commercials²

• 2020 – 2,006 thousand euros

Negative interest rates – Image: M. Schuppich|Shutterstock.com

Update – October 24, 2021: At the end of the third quarter, a total of 392 credit institutions are charging their retail customers negative interest rates. Of these, over 200 banks and savings banks introduced negative interest rates this year. Furthermore, an increasing number of financial institutions are tightening their existing negative interest rate policies by reducing allowances or pushing the interest rate even further into negative territory. This is shown by a Verivox analysis of approximately 1,300 banks.

Penalty interest rates for larger sums of money in current accounts are becoming increasingly common practice at banks in Germany. According to a study by the comparison portal Verivox, the number of financial institutions charging negative interest rates is around 349 – an increase of 171 compared to the previous year. An analysis of the price lists published online by approximately 1,300 banks and savings banks reveals that the tax-free allowance is below €50,000 at about 102 banks – a few even have a limit of just €25,000. Also annoying for bank customers: in about 30 cases, fees are charged on the usually free savings account, as the Statista graphic shows.

The situation will likely continue to worsen in the future. The trigger for this development is the monetary policy of the European Central Bank (ECB). Since commercial banks currently have to pay 0.5 percent interest on excess funds deposited with the ECB, the resulting costs are, in a broader sense, passed on to bank customers.

More information here:

• Negative interest rate policy of banks

Self-made billionaire George Soros – Image: Alexandros Michailidis|Shutterstock.com

The Forbes 400 is a ranking of the wealthiest Americans. To secure a place on the list, one now needs a net worth of around $2.9 billion – last year, $2.1 billion was sufficient. This year's ranking includes 44 new names and has seen the departure of some familiar faces, such as Donald Trump. The collective wealth of these 400 individuals increased by a remarkable 40 percent last year. However, philanthropy has not increased. The number of list members who donate more than 20 percent of their wealth to charity has fallen from ten to eight – representing just two percent of all 400 billionaires.

Many of the world's elite proudly call themselves "self-made billionaires." But how many of them can truly claim this title? Forbes analyzed the career paths of all 400 entries on the list and categorized them into one of ten groups.

The first six categories are occupied by people who inherited part or all of their wealth. A further distinction is made between whether these individuals continue to work and the extent to which they have contributed to increasing the wealth. This category comprises approximately 29.5 percent of the list. Examples include Walmart heir Jim Walton and Dolby heiress Dagmar Dolby.

Category number six is ​​reserved for the 3.3 percent of billionaires who made their fortune as employees in a large company, such as former Microsoft CEO and Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer.

The last four categories are those of self-made billionaires, and arguably the most interesting. Approximately 67.3 percent of the Forbes 400 fall into this category. However, not all self-made individuals are created equal. Roughly one-tenth of these 269 people grew up with wealthy parents, while another 59.5 percent come from the middle class – including the four richest people in the US right now: Bezos, Musk, Zuckerberg, and Gates. The working class has produced around 18.6 percent of self-made super-rich individuals. Only about 28 people (10.4 percent) among the Forbes 400 live the proverbial American Dream. Examples include hedge fund tycoon George Soros and talk show icon Oprah Winfrey.

More information here:

• Top Ten Self-Made Billionaires in the USA