Of the 70% of Germans who save money regularly or occasionally, the vast majority favour traditional forms such as call money and fixed-term deposit accounts, building society savings or even the good old savings book. No wonder, as security is the top priority when it comes to investment decisions.

This preference was stated by 52% of participants in the representative study "How Germany invests", for which the market and opinion research institute Ipsos surveyed 3,200 adults across Germany in November on behalf of Commerzbank. Availability ranked second among the investment criteria (39%), followed by return (35%).

Securities, therefore, play a subordinate role. Only one in five people have a securities savings plan, said Jörn Pyhel, who is responsible for the study at Ipsos, when presenting the results on Wednesday. One in four buy shares, bonds, or ETFs at least occasionally.

Germans lost 64 billion euros in purchasing power last year alone due to their conservative investment behaviour, explained Thomas Schaufler, Member of the Board of Managing Directors for Private and Small-Business Customers at Commerzbank, at the presentation of the study. According to him, 2,140 billion euros were lying dormant in the accounts of private individuals in Germany. With an average inflation rate of 6% and an ECB deposit rate of 3%, the loss of purchasing power amounts to 3% – i.e. 64 billion euros lost by savers. "If you don't utilise the opportunities on the investment side, you are destroying money," he warned.

In order to counteract this form of money destruction and turn savers into investors, the Commerzbank Board of Managing Directors is primarily promoting financial education, starting at school, as well as the use of qualified investment advice. It is essential to keep the entry barriers for saving in securities as low as possible, for example, through low minimum amounts. In addition to the issue of training, politicians were also asked to grant tax incentives for long-term investments.

According to the survey, the majority of Germans are satisfied with their financial situation and
with what they are putting away. According to the survey, 40% save regularly and 30% occasionally. On average, more than 100 euros are put aside each month. Of the 28% of respondents who do not save, 87% stated that they do not have the financial means to do so. "We can hardly speak of a lack of propensity to save," said Pyhel.

According to him, 54% of people in Germany are confident about the future when it comes to their investments. This is a encouraging finding and somewhat surprising in the current economic and political environment.