The European Commission wants to better protect individuals when they invest or invest. Europeans still often choose to save, while it might be more favorable to the economy if they also dared to use their money elsewhere, the commission believes.

Banks have been paying hardly any interest on savings accounts for years. Savers see savings evaporate due to high inflation. But investing or investing is not always attractive either, because sometimes it is difficult to supervise the risks and banks, brokers, advisors and other intermediaries charge huge commissions. Investment costs are often much higher for individuals than for institutional investors such as pension funds. European Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said: “European consumers are not yet getting the best deal in their investment choices.”

The EU Executive Council wants, among other things, to prevent brokers from charging commission if they do not properly inform clients. It also wants to tackle misleading ads. EU countries and the European Parliament still have to approve and often adapt proposals.

The committee actually wanted to completely prevent brokers from collecting commission, as had been the case in the Netherlands for ten years. This would allow them to better keep the client’s interests in mind. Because that plan aroused so much resistance, it was watered down. But if after three years little has been improved, the commission can still move forward, she said.

Only 17 per cent of total European household capital last year consisted of stocks and bonds. In the United States, for example, it is much more than that.