It was obvious on Tuesday that the Stadtsparkasse München had something to celebrate. Anyone who entered the bank’s headquarters in the valley had to pass two colorful displays at the entrance that announced the happy event. In the counter hall decorated with red and white balloons, customers were welcomed by a stilt walker dressed in red and white, there was a bar with soft drinks with bar tables, and behind it the invitation glowed: “Celebrate with us!” Namely the 200th birthday.
When the bank opened its doors for the first time on January 2, 1824, it was still called the “Sparkasse of the Royal Capital and Residence City of Munich”. A few name changes later, current CEO Ralf Fleischer summed up: “We’ve been around for eight generations now. And we’ve survived five political systems.” He proudly added: “On average, companies in Germany are 16 years old. Only two percent of companies are older than 100 years.”
You probably only experience the 200th anniversary of a company “once in your life,” as Fleischer, 60, noted, which is why the bank he has been running for exactly a decade doesn’t just want to stick with a few colorful balloons for its birthday, but instead opts for has come up with all sorts of activities throughout the year. On Tuesday, Fleischer initially announced a “common good package” costing a total of 13.5 million euros, consisting of three building blocks: “The key is: We are committed to Munich.”
The majority of the expenses go to a newly founded sustainability foundation. The foundation capital amounts to a total of ten million euros, the proceeds of which will be used to support economically and ecologically sustainable projects and innovative technologies in the future. It should start with projects that strengthen the financial literacy of customers. According to a recent survey by the European Commission, this competence is rather low among the German population.
So that the foundation does not have to wait long for income, the Stadtsparkasse is already providing 100,000 euros as a donation this year. This sum is taken from the second component of the package, half a million euros for a total of seven smaller initiatives such as the Horizont eV association, which takes care of the protection of homeless women and their children. In addition, the third component is an annual funding amount of three million euros. Last year, the Sparkasse supported 210 projects run by non-profit organizations with 2.8 million euros.
The Stadtsparkasse’s commitment to the common good is based on donations, sponsorship and now seven foundations. Since autumn 2023, it has also been based on the 17 United Nations Sustainability Goals when allocating its funding.
To mark its anniversary, the Stadtsparkasse is also issuing a lucrative savings bond with an interest rate of four percent, a term of six months and a maximum investment amount of 25,000 euros per person. The framework available for this is limited to 200 million euros. Although Fleischer assures that his bank is continuing to advance its digitalization strategy, customers cannot take out the new savings bond online, only in person in one of the 45 branches. They are “still the heart” of the bank, emphasized Fleischer: “We have been close to our customers over the entire 200 years.” Hence the anniversary motto: “All with you.”
Around 800,000 people are customers of the Stadtsparkasse, “around half of all Munich residents,” Fleischer calculated on Tuesday. After there was a lot of anger last summer about new fee models for current accounts, the Stadtsparkasse obviously wants to improve its relationship with customers again. And in a personal conversation about the savings bond, the bank advisors can certainly use the opportunity to influence those customers who have not yet agreed to the switch to a new fee model. Around a fifth of current account holders are still not convinced of its advantages.