The President of the German Savings Banks and Giro Association, Helmut Schleweis, advises long-term investors not to fixate on overnight money. There are currently more suitable forms of investment, he told the German Press Agency on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund’s annual meeting in Morocco.
With overnight money you can currently keep up with inflation, but in the long run it doesn’t make any economic sense, said Schleweis. “As long as inflation is at the level we have now, I will lose substance every year.” It makes more sense to invest in securities over the long term, but in which you then have to sit out fluctuations.
The savings banks themselves had previously come under criticism because, according to an evaluation of comparison portals, they were reluctant to pay interest on current account accounts – even though the European Central Bank (ECB) has raised the key interest rate in the euro area ten times in a row since the summer of 2022.
Schleweis emphasized that, in general, savings banks cannot be accused of low interest rates. “And of course we also have competitors who use bait-and-switch offers to present prices that don’t hold up in the long term.” The savings banks, on the other hand, dealt with the issue responsibly. “Many savings banks also make offers for longer-term investments, which makes much more sense, where the interest rates then have to be represented in completely different dimensions.”
That’s why the free advice is so valuable. In addition, financial education is necessary for all classes – “so that we can understand investment recommendations on our own and then make the decision.” Because ultimately that’s what the investor does.
