Das neue Geben: Banking mit Impact fischt am falschen Ende des Marktes
Milliarden Euro warten darauf, ein neues Sinnangebot zu erhalten. Aber das Thema grüne und soziale Geldanlage fehlt genau dort, wo es funktionieren würde: bei vermögenden Kunden.
A friend recently received unusual mail, joining the 35,000 other customers of the sustainable Triodos Bank who have recently received cancellation notices. The bank is folding, stating that offering its services in Germany will not lead to a significant size in the foreseeable future, as revealed by the management in the letter.
This might suggest there isn't enough demand for green and social investment products in Germany. However, the reality is quite different: the sector faces structural challenges as a mass business. The problem lies precisely where it could thrive: among wealthy customers. Triodos is not alone in this predicament. The Pax-Bank and the Church and Caritas Bank merged, forming a church bank.
Tomorrow, a digital bank, saw its revenues stagnate by 2025, and its latest financial year-end is still in the red. Despite customers using their eco-friendly wooden debit cards and investing, the money goes elsewhere. The investment universe expands upward, but the growth isn't the issue. The niche leader GLS Bank, with 388,000 customers and 11.6 billion euros in volume, earns only a third of what other cooperative banks achieve, with just 24 cents per 100 euros of balance sheet.
Written by urgent.news from Handelsblatt's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
