The election result suggests unpredictable coalition negotiations.
Because entrepreneurs don't like uncertainties, it is no wonder that after the election they ask politicians not to lose any time and to form a government as quickly as possible.
But they also think about which priorities politics should now set - such as climate protection, digitization or the reduction of bureaucracy - and which coalition partners go together for these purposes.
The FAZ asked selected owners, bosses and founders for their comments on the federal election.
The assessments of the decision-makers from the business world show: Nobody dodges lamentations, instead most of them direct their gaze pragmatically at the opportunities that are now available.
Some also take comfort in the fact that the worst fears after the election did not materialize.
Inhibited FDP under Scholz?
Julian Teicke, founder and head of the insurance start-up Wefox, sees climate protection and digitization as the most urgent challenges. He attributes the greatest competencies in these two fields to the Greens and the Liberals. “The new federal government consists of the Greens and the FDP - that's the good news,” he says. Under Scholz, the FDP could not play to its strengths. Because the social democrat has no understanding of what it takes to catapult Germany to the top in the global competition for innovations. Under Laschet, however, according to Teicke, both the FDP and the Greens could play to their strengths. The Wefox founder therefore hopes for a Germany that is fit for the future, shaped by the FDP and the Greens and held together by the mediator and reconciler Armin Laschet.
Antje von Dewitz, boss and heiress of the outdoor manufacturer Vaude, also emphasizes that it is now in the hands of the Greens and the FDP who they want to form a coalition with. “The winner is the SPD, the loser is the CDU,” she says. Hopefully the parties will take responsibility and move closer to avoiding a grand coalition that no one wants. Christian Kahler, chief investment strategist at DZ Bank, also emphasizes how conspicuously intense the FDP and the Greens have spoken in recent weeks about the fact that the focus is on digitization and climate change.
Markus Haas, head of the telecommunications company Telefónica Deutschland, also sees climate protection and digitization as priorities. "There has to be a digital jolt through Germany - for the future of our economy, society and climate protection," he says. The parties are now asked to quickly form a new government and create the framework for additional investments in the expansion of digital network infrastructures. Above all, it would make sense to extend inventory frequencies instead of auctioning them off. Funds released could also be used to expand the network. "This would significantly accelerate digitization and secure future prosperity in Germany," says Haas.
Christian Bruch, head of the technology company Siemens Energy, which was promoted to the Dax, describes climate protection and the energy transition as one of the most important tasks.
The parties now have to show that they are serious about it.
This also requires more honesty: "The transformation will bring painful restrictions and, at least in the beginning, also cost jobs," says Bruch.
Nevertheless, it must be possible to take the people with you on the way, otherwise the bill will be for those who follow
Max Viessmann, head of the heating manufacturer of the same name, sees the election result on closer inspection as a clear vote in favor of more ecological sensitivity, innovation and new beginnings.
For him, the energy transition is above all a heating transition.