In 2000, the Landgraves of Hesse organised a garden festival at Schloss Fasanerie for the first time. This year, the Princely Garden Festival will take place from 25 to 27 April at Hofgut Kranichstein near Darmstadt, then in May and August at Schloss Fasanerie near Fulda and in September at Schloss Wolfsgarten in Langen.

The return triangles of Deutsches Aktieninstitut show how monthly equity savings have developed over different periods of time – with sometimes surprisingly stable results. They make it clear what influence the investment horizon has on the annual return and how risks are relativised in the long term.

A recent study by Deutsches Aktieninstitut and the Boerse Stuttgart Group examines why Sweden outperforms the major EU countries in terms of IPOs and market capitalisation. The study shows how a broad investor base through pension schemes and equity savings models, a growth-friendly legal framework and an active SME growth market contribute to success. Find out more about the recommendations for action for Germany and the EU to strengthen capital markets and promote an equity culture. An inspiring look at a successful European model and its lessons for the future of our capital markets!

The newly elected Bundestag and the future federal government face major tasks. The people in our country, but also companies, rightly expect stable cooperation between the democratic parties in order to take important initiatives and tackle pressing problems in the coming legislative period. Strengthening the competitiveness of companies and safeguarding pension provision are two of the most urgent tasks.

Frankfurt is one of the top ten financial centres in the world. That is pleasing. However, it is also true that Frankfurt is not realising its full potential and must take care not to neglect its competitiveness. In several areas, Frankfurt is not only in a position to catch up with the USA, but also to secure Europe’s position in the global financial system in the long term.