Low rates hobble Germany’s public banks

Reflective mood: More than 900 Sparkassen branches closed in 2016

Reichenau am Bodensee, which lies about 10 kilometres west of Konstanz in southern Germany, is a pretty little town. It has an eighth-century Benedictine monastery, picturesque half-timbered houses and a handful of welcoming Gaststätten. And like every German town and city, it has its obligatory savings bank, Bezirkssparkasse Reichenau. 

With assets of a little over €1 billion at the end of 2016, deposits of just over €600 million, loans of €950 million and a workforce of 132 employees, Reichenau’s savings bank is hardly a global systemically important bank.