Investing in World War III

Dusseldorf “You want to put money aside for a possible attack on NATO?” the bank employee asks with a stony expression. The customer from Bergisch Gladbach, mother of two sons of primary school age, still remembers the visit to the local branch of the Paffrather Raiffeisenbank on a Monday morning.

The 45-year-old, who does not want to read her name in the Handelsblatt, wanted to open a locker – and order $20,000 in cash. It is preparing for an escalation of the Ukraine war and a Russian attack on other western countries. Her story shows how quickly investing strategies change when the fear factor grows.