Over 12 million germans own shares

 An annual study by Deutsches Aktieninstitut as found that a total of 12.3 million German citizens save in stocks, stock funds and ETFs. That is 17.6 percent of the population aged 14 and over - or just over one in six.
Compared to 2022, that represents a decrease of 570,000.

Despite rising interest rates and persistent inflation, major geopolitical tensions and weak economic growth prospects, savers largely remained loyal to stock investments. That is a good result according to the Deutsches Aktieninstut.

Funds and ETFs are an indispensable part of the share portfolio. Of the 12.3 million share savers, 7.6 million have only funds or ETFs in their portfolio. 2.0 million only invest in shares. 2.6 million savers combine both types of investment.

The number of investors in funds and ETFs is around 10.3 million, which is the same as last year. Fund and ETF savings are the foundation of share saving. More than 80 percent of share portfolios contain funds or ETFs. The number of those who invest directly in shares, on the other hand, has decreased: only 4.7 million - 585,000 fewer than in 2022 - are invested in individual shares.

Many savers remained loyal to stock investments. Loyalty to stocks - despite interest rate changes and turbulent times High inflation, as last seen in the 1970s, hit people with low incomes particularly hard and further limited their ability to save.

Due to rising interest rates, fixed-interest investments again competed more strongly with stocks, funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and, together with the record high of the DAX at the end of the year, provided incentives for profit-taking and reallocation in the portfolio. Overnight and fixed-term deposits celebrated a comeback.

Against this background, the stable number of stock savers is a good result. The number of investors in equity funds and ETFs remained stable, while the number of shareholders fell in 2023.

The analysis shows that it was more men who liquidated their stock investments. Women, on the other hand, were just as involved in the stock market in 2023 as they were in 2022. Older investors remained invested. Younger investors withdrew somewhat. In the long-term trend, however, the positive attitude towards stocks among younger people remains intact