Greeks lost 30 percent of their wealth since 2007, while in the rest of western Europe households are much better off economically in 2015 than in 2007, a report says.
The Allianz Global Wealth Report, by German insurance giant Allianz, says that, “The crisis has left big scars in Greece, where almost half of its population belonged in the affluent middle class when the country entered the euro zone, and now only 20 percent belong in this class.”
The average financial assets of Greeks — the total of bank deposits, securities and holdings in insurance programs minus total debts – was 11.231 euros in 2015. This is much lower than other euro zone countries, excluding Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia.
The Swiss are in first place with average assets of 170,589 euros and Americans come second with 160,949 euros. The difference between the second and third is large, with the British having an average of 95,600 euros each. The Germans rank 18th (47,681 euros), below the Italians in 15th place (53,494 euros) and the French, 16th with average assets of 53,425 euros.
The report continues, “however, the wealth seems to be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a small rich elite: The very rich are getting richer and further away from the average. This is also a form of growing inequality. Although it has not resulted in a real social polarization, it has the potential to put pressure on social cohesion in the long term, if the majority of the population becomes convinced that economic development is something that only benefits the few, while the rest of the population remain more or less where they were.”
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