Every investor has their own mentality and special needs.

Both are reflected in his investment style and the distribution of investments.

Nevertheless, there are also typical behaviors.

The Germans are not known as a nation of gamblers.

With a great love for savings books and the like, they are considered to be rather cautious savers, which has a particularly negative impact in times of high inflation like these.

Many investment interest rates have risen again somewhat in the meantime.

But according to the Federal Statistical Office, prices have increased by 7.9 percent on average in 2022 compared to 2021.

In December, the inflation rate was 8.6 percent, in October it was an annual high of 10.4 percent.

Kerstin Papon

Editor in Business.

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And how do German citizens tick as securities savers?

The fund company Union Investment investigated this question together with the market research institute Kantar.

2000 investors were surveyed who had already taken the first hurdle: they owned shares or funds.

According to the results of the representative survey for this group of investors, which the FAZ has previously available, the majority of these investors are extremely cautious, despite all their experience with shares or funds, and are primarily concerned with the risks of their own investments.

Around half of respondents, the largest group, are willing to take moderate, manageable risks for limited rewards.

These "growth-oriented" investors mostly own funds - almost nine out of ten respondents say so.

More than two-thirds also have four to ten individual shares in their portfolio.

The share looks similar with a view to home loan savings contracts and endowment life insurance.

Multiple entries were possible.

The evolution of saving can be seen clearly in these investors, says Giovanni Gay, Managing Director of Union Investment.

Although they stuck to their usual investments, they also used more promising forms of investment, although they usually only used a smaller part of their savings for this.

About a quarter of those surveyed consider themselves conservative.

For these investors, value retention is clearly the priority.

Two-thirds rely on funds, 60 percent on call money, and only a quarter invest in individual stocks.

Stocks and funds make up less than 25 percent of the assets of the majority (67 percent) of these conservative savers, and only one in five is more.

Tested on the trading floor

According to Union Investment, the rest find it easier to move around the trading floor.

Around a fifth of investors are "yield-oriented" and willing to take on more risk for higher interest rates and returns.

4 percent of respondents described themselves as speculative.

According to the analysis, the investment mix in both groups is significantly more varied.

In the comparison, these investors also have the largest proportion of shares and funds in their portfolio.

Around two-thirds each have more than a quarter of their financial assets in securities and shares, with speculative investors tending to be more willing to take on very high risks.

However, the higher the willingness to take risks, the more positive are the emotions associated with the investment.

81 percent of speculative investors associate this topic with optimism or anticipation.

At the same time, however, they also have the largest proportion of investors who associate something like pressure with it (22 percent).

The emotional balance is quite different for conservative savers, for example: one in three respondents feels overwhelmed here, almost half associate pessimism and the risk of losses with the investment, and one in ten is annoyed by the topic.

Equities or funds are not a guarantee of success – strong nerves are sometimes required, especially in the short term.

But other investments also harbor risks.

What counts above all: patience and diversification.

If you take the year 2022 alone, investors would have lost 12 percent in value with the Dax - before fees, taxes and, here too: the high inflation.

However, the index has theoretically ended only 22 years in loss since 1949, but 52 in profit.

Depending on the time of entry, the returns on long-term investments are often considerable.

This is shown, for example, by the yield triangle of Deutsches Aktieninstitut.

And what about funds?

According to the industry association BVI, savings plans on German equity funds have yielded an annual average of 4.3 percent over the past 15 years, and global equity funds even 6.5 percent.

A one-off investment, on the other hand, would have achieved an average increase of 62 or 94.3 percent in this period.

The good news is that this is in line with the expectations of many respondents.

Not even one in three expects quick gains from stocks.

Of course, speculators often see things differently.

The emotional downside: In contrast to more cautious investors, they are often dissatisfied.