Frankfurt The high inflation and the declines on the stock markets are leaving their mark on the savings bank fund provider Deka. Net sales of securities halved in the third quarter compared to the previous year to 4.9 billion euros, as the Frankfurt institute announced on Tuesday.
“Many customers are very uncertain due to the war in Ukraine, high inflation and the downturn on the stock markets,” Deka Sales Director Torsten Knapmeyer told Handelsblatt.
In terms of their investment behavior, however, most private investors acted prudently despite the difficult market environment. “The vast majority of customers continue to use their savings plans, but are reluctant to conclude new savings plans or make one-off investments.”
All in all, Deka customers concluded 50,000 new savings contracts from July to the end of September – around 80 percent fewer than in the same quarter of the previous year. According to Knapmeyer, the number of canceled savings contracts was only about ten percent higher than in the same quarter of the previous year. “Also in October and November we have so far recorded more new investments than liquidations,” reports the Deka board. “That shows: if you can still save, you save.”
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Knapmeyer assumes that this trend will continue in the coming months. “Surveys of our existing customers indicate that many Germans are reducing their consumption during the crisis, but still want to save.”
Deka is heading for record profits
Savings Bank President Helmut Schleweis has warned that due to high inflation, 60 percent of German households will have no money left to save at the end of the month or will even slip into the red. Knapmeyer attributes the fact that this is not reflected more strongly in the Deka figures to “the fact that above all higher-income savings bank customers invest in our products”.
Investment preferences have shifted somewhat with the turnaround in interest rates. While net sales in fund business fell by almost 30 percent to EUR 11.9 billion in the first nine months, certificates rose by a good ten percent to EUR 7.3 billion.
Certificates have become more attractive due to the rise in interest rates, says Knapmeyer. “I assume that the demand for bond funds will also increase in the coming months.” Sales of real estate funds have been relatively stable so far. “Here we are only marginally below the previous year’s value in the first nine months.”
Deka itself increased its profit significantly thanks to the stable operating business and special effects. The economic result increased in the first nine months by around 60 percent to 995 million euros.
“Looking at the year as a whole, we continue to expect an economic result of around one billion euros,” said Deka boss Georg Stocker. The bank, which is owned by the savings banks, would thus surpass its previous record profit of 925 million euros from 2010.
More: Banks see themselves well prepared – “Don’t talk about a financial crisis”