The financial literacy of people in Germany increases with age. The older a person is, the more confident they are in their own money management skills, the more satisfied they are with the services offered by the financial sector, and the fewer hurdles they perceive, according to an online survey of around 3,000 people commissioned by the credit agency Schufa.

The trend can be seen clearly in the Financial Inclusion Index. It is divided into six age groups – from 16 to 24 years at the lower end, to 65 to 74 years at the upper end – the degree of financial inclusion increases with each age cohort and in each category. However, it remains unclear what happens at older ages, since those aged 75 and over were not surveyed.

The authors wanted to know, for example, how satisfied people are with their accounts, payment methods and mobile banking, as well as at the bank counter (satisfaction with use category). They also wanted to know how confident they are in keeping track of their income and expenditure, comparing prices or taking out a loan (financial literacy). Furthermore, they investigated how secure participants consider payment methods and accounts to be (trust), and how smoothly opening an account went, how well communication works and how close the nearest branch is (accessibility).

On a scale of 0 to 100 points, Germans scored an average of 68, while the oldest group scored 74 and the youngest group only 58. Young people fall far behind all other age groups, particularly in the financial literacy category, but also in trust and accessibility.

The study shows a double vulnerability. Those who already have a low income, report material and social deprivation, or have a lower level of education, also feel less secure in financial matters, as the average values show. A high level of digital literacy, on the other hand, favours dealing with financial matters.