The tough budget negotiations have once again made it clear how little creative power the governing coalition in Berlin still has. Despite weeks of negotiations between the three coalition leaders, it was not possible to agree on priorities and even come close to closing the billion-euro gaps in the core budget or in the climate and transformation fund. What the SPD, Greens and FDP can apparently still agree on, however, is that more private capital must be mobilised in view of tight budgets – to finance the transformation and boost the economy.

Capital market promotion as the lowest common denominator of the coalition? At least the draft of the Future Financing Act, part two, was finalised quickly, and the package has a realistic chance of coming into force as early as next spring. The fact that the package will only cost the federal and state governments around 100 million euros a year from 2026 certainly contributes to this.

However, the draft bill, which went to the departmental vote on Wednesday, is not the great liberating blow. Many adjustments are being made in the right direction: IPOs and access to growth capital are being made easier. Some tax framework conditions will be adjusted. Some companies will benefit from lower reporting requirements. And fund managers will be able to invest in renewable energies and infrastructure with greater legal certainty. However, these are all comparatively small adjustments.

The package will then be completed with the transposition of numerous EU regulations into German law, which the German government can hardly claim as a major achievement. On the positive side, however, these implementations not only further strengthen German market access, but also represent an important step towards the much-needed deepening of the European Capital Markets Union. The lack of venture capital, for example, is not a purely German issue.

If you want to look at it positively, you could argue that by presenting the Future Financing Act II, the German government is sending out a small sign of life. However, this will probably neither decisively improve the competitiveness of the location nor provide for new growth fantasies. And the Future Financing Act II will hardly be able to save the coalition peace until the next election.