Longevity economy and financial well-being

As the life expectancy of the world’s population lengthens and the birth rate declines, new approaches are needed to address social and economic challenges. A study by the World Economic Forum details the principles to be followed to ensure social well-being and prosperity amid this demographic paradigm shift.

The success of socio-economic development is often accompanied by an ageing population. In addition to improvements in nutrition, medicine, sanitation, education and economic well-being that extend the life expectancy of the population, there is a reduction in the birth rate, either because of the exodus of rural populations to large cities or because people have other priorities.

The fact is that the world is ageing fast. People over 60 years of age already represent 11% of the world’s population and, by 2050, this figure will rise to 22%. In Spain, it is expected that by this date there will be 23.3 million people over 50, half of the population.

This will have a major economic and social impact. As life expectancy lengthens, the proportion of the larger population that is economically dependent increases, while at the same time, fewer people can contribute to paying the pensions of an ageing population.

In other words, it becomes difficult to guarantee the welfare of this ageing population. According to data from the World Health Organisation, while life expectancy has increased by more than 6 years from 2000 to 2019, healthy life expectancy has increased by just over 5 years.

It is therefore necessary to implement new measures to ensure that the longevity economy is not at odds with the well-being of the entire population and has a positive impact amidst the changing global demographic landscape.

The 6 principles of the longevity economy

The report presented by the World Economic Forum acknowledges that it is not easy to address longevity issues globally, as each country has a different reality: various pension and retirement systems, divergent retirement ages and different choices by gender or profession. However, it proposes a set of six principles to which companies, governments and societies can subscribe.

1. Ensuring financial stability across key life events. Nearly 40 per cent of the world’s population faces financial instability due to unplanned career interruptions, unexpected illness or retirement and would find it impossible or very difficult to access emergency cash within 30 days. Two-thirds of the population are worried about not having enough money for normal monthly expenses and half would run out of savings within a month if they lost their income, while a third would do so within a week.

   Therefore, public-private partnerships should be encouraged to design policies and programmes that protect people from falling into poverty as a result of key life events and provide workers with access to financial savings and insurance vehicles, so that there is a financial cushion and no danger of outliving savings.

2. Provide universal access to financial education. Only 33% of the world’s population is financially literate, contributing to economic inequalities that are strongly correlated with inequalities in life expectancy. In other words, a large proportion of citizens lack the necessary skills to manage their finances effectively.

   Financial literacy is a necessary skill that is essential in everyday life. It is easier to make the right decisions about managing a household, planning savings, applying for credit or taking out a mortgage if we have a minimum level of financial literacy. Consequently, there is a need for comprehensive and unbiased financial education to enable people to make informed financial decisions.

3. Prioritise healthy ageing as the basis for the longevity economy. The main reason why older people leave their jobs before reaching retirement age is declining health. Eighty per cent of adults in developing countries are worried about the cost of medical expenses and suffer from illness for a fifth of their lives.

   The focus needs to be on equitable access to health services that can facilitate the well-being of both the individual and society at large through prevention and care. By seeking to delay or prevent the onset of diseases, especially chronic diseases and accidents, because of their financial impact on the individual and society.

4. Evolve jobs and lifelong skill-building for a multigenerational workforce. Globally, up to 25% of people aged 55 and over want to work, but cannot because they have difficulty finding opportunities. Ageism or technological barriers are some of the impediments they encounter that cause them to be pushed out of the system no matter how much they want to continue working.

   Demographic changes and technological innovations require occupations and training to adapt and evolve, allowing people to extend their working years as they wish. Continuous training and lifelong learning should be commonplace for individuals and enterprises and supported or promoted by government and organisations.

5. Design systems and environments for social connectedness and purpose. The study stresses the importance of social connectedness. Socially isolated, older people are at greater risk of illness and premature death. Numerous studies have scientifically proven the correlation between loneliness and illness.

   Encouraging the design and promotion of systems and environments for social connectedness can mitigate these effects. At the same time, ageism must be combated to avoid this double discrimination that isolates people over 50 from society and can lead to poverty.

6. Address longevity inequalities, including across gender, race and class. Pensions are not distributed equally, with women receiving, on average, 26% less in retirement pensions than men. Within the same country, there are situations of inequality in life expectancy depending on the income level of citizens, or their ethnicity.

   Advocacy for equal pay and pensions, as well as support for informal carers, are some crucial elements to ensure that financial security and the benefits of longevity can be more accessible to all.

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Having money in a current account has always been synonymous with prudence. Today, however, it may be one of the most expensive financial decisions there is.

For generations, saving has been the cornerstone of family economic security. Setting money aside was a virtue. A cushion against unforeseen events. A promise of future peace of mind. But the context that made this logic possible has disappeared. And continuing to act as if nothing has changed can carry a silent, yet extremely high cost.

The uncomfortable question is no longer whether we invest well or poorly. It is whether not investing is, in fact, a losing decision.

The Mistake of Confusing Safety with Inactivity

For decades, leaving money in the bank made sense. Inflation was low, interest rates offered a positive real return, and the value of savings remained stable over time. Today, that equation has broken down.

With persistent inflation, real interest rates — that is, interest rates minus inflation — remain negative. This means that even if the current account balance does not decrease, its real value does. Each passing year, saved money buys fewer goods and services.

According to Eurostat data, prices in the euro area have consolidated well above pre-pandemic levels. And despite interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank, traditional savings returns remain insufficient to offset this loss of purchasing power.

The result is paradoxical: what we perceive as safe — doing nothing — is actually a slow but constant form of impoverishment.

The Hidden Cost of Not Deciding

Not investing is not a neutral position. It is an implicit bet that the economic system will function as it once did. But the context has changed structurally.

We live in an environment marked by:

• Public and private debt at historic highs. 
• Unconventional monetary policies that have altered the price of money. 
• Growing systemic risks, from geopolitical tensions to financial fragilities.
  

In this scenario, keeping all savings immobilized amounts to assuming that inflation is temporary, that prices will fall, and that time will work in our favour. But reality points in precisely the opposite direction.

The cost of not deciding does not appear on any bank statement. It generates no alerts. It causes no immediate anxiety. However, it steadily erodes wealth. It is an invisible, yet cumulative cost.

When Saving Stops Protecting

Here we must make a key distinction that is often overlooked. Saving is not the same as protecting value. Saving is accumulating money. Protecting is preserving its purchasing power over time. And investing is attempting to make that value grow above inflation.

When money remains idle in an inflationary environment, saving ceases to fulfil its protective function. It becomes a still photograph within a film that keeps moving forward.

This is one of the major psychological traps of the current system: we confuse nominal stability with real security. But economic security is not about seeing the same number in the account, but about what we can do with that money today and tomorrow.

Saving, Protecting, Investing: Three Phases, Not One Single Decision

A mature relationship with money is not based on a single action, but on a phased strategy. Saving is essential. It is the first step. Without savings, there is no room for manoeuvre nor capacity for decision.

Protecting is the second. It means preventing inflation from eroding accumulated value. Here assets, strategies, and approaches designed to preserve purchasing power come into play. Investing is the third. Not to speculate, but to grow wealth consistently with the acceptable level of risk, time horizon, and each person’s life objectives.

Skipping the last two phases leaves one exposed. Not to market risk, but to the very real risk of losing the value of money.

The Fear of Investing Also Has a Price

Many people do not invest out of fear. Fear of losing. Fear of not understanding. Fear of making a bad decision. This fear is understandable, especially after financial crises in which many were burned. But not deciding is also a decision. And it has consequences.

In a world of fiat money, structural inflation, and accelerated change, inaction no longer protects. It merely postpones the problem. And often makes it larger.

Investing does not mean taking disproportionate risks or gambling. It means understanding the context, diversifying, thinking long term, and making informed decisions. Exactly the opposite of impulsive speculation.

The Essential Shift in Mindset

The major challenge is not financial, but cultural. We have been taught to associate prudence with immobility. But today, prudence requires being active, aware, and responsible with money. 

This implies:

• Accepting that the context has changed. 
• Understanding that passive saving no longer protects. 
• Educating oneself to decide with criteria. 
• Assuming that doing nothing also carries risks. 

It is not about seeking miraculous returns. It is about avoiding a certain loss.

The question is no longer where to invest, but whether we can afford not to. At La Plaça d’11Onze, we advocate an active, conscious, and responsible relationship with money. Because in a world where idle savings lose value, deciding is the only way to protect the future. Discover more analysis and tools to stop being a spectator of your economy.

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Climate change is the biggest challenge facing humanity and halting global warming is essential to ensure our survival. The transition to cleaner and renewable energy sources is a key factor in achieving this. But to what extent is it feasible?

The World Economic Forum’s latest Global Risks Report 2024 finds that extreme weather events, biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and natural resource scarcity pose the greatest risk to humanity over the next decade.

The main cause is the burning of fossil fuels, which has increased as the human population has grown. Their combustion generates greenhouse gases that trap the sun’s rays in the earth’s atmosphere, raising the average surface temperature of the planet.

No time to stop global warming

Greenhouse gas emissions reached record highs in the past decade. Although their rate of growth has slowed, the report “Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change” warns that limiting global warming to 1.5 °C will only be possible if there is an immediate and deep reduction in emissions.

To achieve this, emissions would have to be cut by almost half by 2030 and be zero by mid-century. At the COP28 summit in Dubai last December, it was agreed to triple the use of renewable energy in the next five years.

Yet, the world still consumes over 35 billion barrels of oil yearly. This dependence on fossil fuels is unsustainable, both from a production and environmental point of view. Experts estimate that 40% of the world’s oil reserves have already been exhausted and that, at the current rate, there are only about 50 years left.

Can the world run on renewable energy alone?

Renewable energy is any type of energy that comes from a source that does not run out over time. There are many renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind or geothermal energy, and they are important because, unlike hydrocarbons, they are infinite and produce almost no polluting emissions.

The main problem with renewable energies is the instability of their production and storage so that they can be easily distributed. In other words, they are limited in terms of their availability and location, which makes them unprofitable. However, the cost could be reduced by developing more advanced technologies to capture energy and transport it more efficiently.

In this context, a study by IRENA, the International Renewable Energy Agency, shows that a 100% renewable energy model is possible and points the way towards a 45% reduction in carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from 2010 levels by 2030, and net-zero emissions by 2050.

IRENA’s analysis concludes that we already have the technologies that can lead us to a decarbonised energy system, with solutions that can be deployed rapidly and at scale. The study shows that more than 90% of the solutions that make the 2050 goal possible involve renewables through direct supply, electrification, energy efficiency, green hydrogen and bioenergy combined with carbon capture and storage.

The Agency argues that the increase in electricity prices on the wholesale market has been caused by the high price of gas from which electricity is produced because, right now, renewables do not provide the stability needed to guarantee electricity supply. Therefore, the sooner we achieve a decarbonised economy, the sooner we will leave behind this dependence and the extreme price variations associated with it.

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El producte interior brut (PIB) és la mètrica principal que es far servir per mesurar el rendiment econòmic d’un país. No obstant això, aquest indicador presenta limitacions significatives i sovint no reflecteix el benestar real de les persones. Per analitzar l’economia en termes de benestar econòmic i social efectiu, diversos organismes han proposat algunes alternatives que poden ajudar a guiar les polítiques públiques cap a unes economies més sostenibles i que ofereixin una millor qualitat de vida.

El PIB representa el valor total de tots els béns i serveis produïts en un país durant un període de temps determinat i es va establir com el mètode principal per mesurar l’èxit econòmic d’un país a partir de la dècada del 1950. Generalment, es calcula trimestralment, però la dada que s’utilitza per mesurar la mida d’una economia i fer comparacions entre països és el PIB anual. 

Hi ha diverses maneres de calcular el PIB, però el mètode més utilitzat pels bancs centrals i instituts nacionals d’estadística mesura tres components principals: consum, inversió i despesa governamental, més la diferència entre exportacions i importacions. Això és útil per obtenir una visió general de l’activitat econòmica, però també té algunes limitacions importants.

Per una banda, no mostra com està distribuïda la riquesa dins d’un país ni té en compte el benestar social. Per tant, no reflecteix la desigualtat que pot ser causada per una riquesa concentrada en un petit percentatge de la població i no pren en consideració factors com la salut, l’educació, la seguretat o la qualitat de vida de la població.

Per l’altra, no contempla la sostenibilitat ni l’impacte negatiu en el medi ambient d’algunes activitats econòmiques. Així mateix, tampoc comptabilitza l’economia submergida ni el treball domèstic no remunerat que representen una gran part de l’activitat econòmica de molts països.

Per abordar aquestes limitacions, s’han desenvolupat diverses alternatives que van més enllà del paradigma econòmic dominant amb l’objectiu d’analitzar l’economia i presentar una imatge més real en termes del benestar econòmic i social del conjunt de la població.

Mesurant una economia més humana

Diversos organismes locals i internacionals defensen que és necessari adoptar una actitud reflexiva en vers les normatives que determinen els models i indicadors usats per analitzar el creixement econòmic i així millorar la fiabilitat de la informació que es fa servir en la presa de decisions. Amb aquest objectiu, han sorgit diverses propostes alternatives per a mesurar la qualitat de vida, com són:

• Índex de Desenvolupament Humà (IDH). Creat per les Nacions Unides, combina indicadors de tipus econòmic, com per exemple els ingressos per càpita ajustats per la paritat de poder adquisitiu, amb altres variables de salut com poden ser l’esperança de vida i l’educació. D’aquesta manera s’ofereix una visió més holística del desenvolupament humà que facilita l’anàlisi de les diferències en la qualitat de vida entre països.
• Índex de Progrés Genuí (IPG). De la mateixa manera que l’IDH, té en compte factors com la distribució de la riquesa, la degradació ambiental i el treball no remunerat, però comptabilitza a la baixa els costos derivats de la degradació ambiental i la pèrdua de recursos naturals, les desigualtats de renda, el deute extern i la delinqüència.
• Índex de Benestar Econòmic Sostenible (IBES). Similar a l’IPG, l’índex de benestar econòmic sostenible valora el treball domèstic no remunerat i té en compte la degradació ambiental, la desigualtat de renda i les despeses relacionades amb el crim i l’atur per comptabilitzar factors que no es mesuren en el PIB. 
• Índex de Felicitat Nacional Bruta (FNB). Desenvolupat a Bhutan, l’índex FNB posa l’èmfasi en la importància del benestar emocional i social. Es basa en nou factors per mesurar la prosperitat de la població: benestar psicològic, salut, educació, ús del temps, diversitat cultural, bon govern, vitalitat comunitària, ecologia i nivell de vida. 

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Every year, at the end of March and October, we move our clocks forward or backward with apparent normality. But behind this routine gesture lies a structural anomaly that directly impacts our health, our economy, and our way of life. Catalonia —and the entire Iberian Peninsula— lives in a time zone that does not correspond to it. And this is not harmless. The question is inevitable: why do we accept it… and who benefits?

Geographically, Catalonia is aligned with the Greenwich meridian. This means that, by natural position, it should follow the same time as Portugal or the United Kingdom (UTC+0 in winter). However, reality is different: we follow Central European Time (UTC+1 in winter and UTC+2 in summer), shared with cities such as Berlin or Paris.

This anomaly is not the result of chance, but of a political decision. In 1940, the Franco regime advanced the clock to align with Nazi Germany. What was meant to be a temporary adjustment became a structural legacy that, decades later, still conditions the way we live.

The consequences are evident: the sun rises and sets later than it should, our social schedules do not match our biological rhythms, and we end up living in a permanent misalignment. A seemingly small mismatch… with a profound impact on our daily lives.

The biological clock does not understand politics

Our body does not understand decrees or political decisions, as it functions according to circadian rhythms, a biological mechanism mainly regulated by sunlight. This internal clock determines when we feel sleepy, when we are alert, and when our body performs best.

When official time moves away from solar time, this balance is broken. We sleep less and worse, accumulated fatigue increases, and our ability to concentrate is affected. In the long term, this misalignment is also associated with an increased risk of metabolic and cardiovascular problems.

Several chronobiology studies define this phenomenon as permanent “social jet lag”, comparable to living in a constant time shift. And here lies the great paradox: in a society obsessed with productivity, we are organizing time in a way that actually undermines it.

Low productivity, but long working hours

Spain is one of the European countries with the longest working hours, yet with below-average productivity. This is no coincidence. Time misalignment directly impacts performance: more fatigue means lower work capacity, more hours do not equal greater efficiency, and poorer rest leads to more sick leave.

To this scenario we must add an extended time culture —late lunches, late dinners, and prime-time slots that stretch well into the night— which amplifies the problem. The result is a model that prioritizes presence over actual performance.

At the same time, one of the main justifications for the time change —energy savings— has become obsolete. Several studies by the European Commission indicate that the impact is minimal, and even negative in some cases. Consumption patterns have changed: more climate control, more technology, and less dependence on natural light. We thus maintain a measure designed for a 20th-century industrial economy… in a 21st-century digital economy.

Who decides time?

This is where the debate becomes truly interesting. Time is not only a technical matter, but also a tool of social and economic control. Deciding official time ultimately means deciding when we work, when we consume, when we rest, and how we live. It is not a minor detail: it is an invisible architecture that structures our daily lives.

This reality fits into a broader logic: that of a system that prioritizes apparent economic efficiency over real well-being. As happens in financial, monetary, or fiscal domains, we often accept as normal structures that respond to political decisions and specific interests. Time, like money, is not neutral.

The debate about abolishing the time change has been on the table in the European Union for years, yet it remains stalled. Perhaps because the underlying question is deeper than it seems: what schedule do we want as a society? Do we want to live aligned with natural rhythms… or with market dynamics? Recovering a schedule consistent with our geography is not just a matter of comfort; it is about health, productivity, and quality of life.

Time is a resource. Perhaps the most valuable one we have. And managing it poorly has a cost that we pay every day, often without realizing it. At 11Onze, we believe that understanding these dynamics is the first step toward making more informed and freer decisions. Because only when we question what seems normal can we begin to regain control —of time, of money, and ultimately, of our lives.

11Onze is the community fintech of Catalonia. Open an account by downloading the app El Canut for Android or iOS and join the revolution!

In addition to gold’s usefulness in the financial, ornamental and technological fields, it can also contribute to the sustainability of the planet. Research has found that a nanoparticle catalyst of this precious metal can convert waste materials, such as biomass and polyester, into useful organic silicon compounds. 

Plastic waste is a problem for humanity. That is why many resources are being invested in the search for ways to recycle them and give them a new useful life. Several lines of research aim to convert these waste materials into useful compounds and products in an efficient way.

One of them, involving scientists at Tokyo Metropolitan University, has found that gold nanoparticles supported on a zirconium oxide support can convert waste materials, such as biomass and polyester, into organosilane compounds, which are valuable chemicals with a wide range of applications. The results of their study were recently published in the prestigious Journal of the American Chemical Society.

The new protocol takes advantage of the combination of gold nanoparticles with a zirconium oxide support, whose characteristics allow it to react both as a base and as an acid. This makes it possible to recycle the waste under less demanding conditions and in a more environmentally friendly way than with the systems investigated so far.

New life for plastic waste

The research team has been working for some time on converting plastic and biomass into organosilanes, which are organic molecules with a silicon atom attached to carbon used in high-quality coatings and in the production of pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. 

The problem until now was that the addition of the silicon atom involved the use of air- and moisture-sensitive reagents that require high temperatures and extremely acidic or basic conditions. As a result, the conversion process was not at all environmentally efficient.

A key step

The big finding is that the new gold nanoparticle catalyst causes ether and ester groups, both of which are abundant in plastics such as polyester and biomass compounds such as cellulose, to react with the disilane to form useful organosilanes. All that is needed is gentle heating in solution. 

The researchers have identified that the key to the effectiveness of this conversion lies in the combination of the gold nanoparticles and the amphoteric nature of the zirconium oxide support, i.e. its ability to act interchangeably as a base and an acid.

Double advantage

Not only does this system allow polyesters to be decomposed under much less demanding conditions than those used so far. More importantly, the reaction products are valuable compounds ready for use. 

The research team hopes that this new way of producing organosilanes will lead to a carbon-neutral future by allowing plastic waste to be recycled efficiently and preventing thousands of tonnes of plastic waste from burning in incineration plants.

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Brussel·les proposa els pilars legals per garantir l’acceptació de l’euro digital i la seva coexistència amb els diners en efectiu. Els bancs comercials seran els encarregats de distribuir i limitar les quantitats d’aquesta divisa digital. Però respectaran la privacitat i l’anonimat dels ciutadans?

La Comissió Europea i el Banc Central Europeu han presentat un paquet de propostes legislatives per convèncer al Parlament Europeu i al Consell de la UE de donar suport al llançament de l’euro digital. Les autoritats europees justifiquen la necessitat d’una CBDC  perquè cada vegada hi ha més ciutadans -un 55% segons les seves enquestes- que prefereixen pagar a través de mètodes electrònics.

Es tracta d’un conjunt de mesures que busquen oferir un mètode de pagament alternatiu i complementari als diners en efectiu per als ciutadans i les empreses. El Banc Central Europeu decidiria qui podrà fer servir l’euro digital, com es farà servir internacionalment, i els bancs comercials s’encarregarien de distribuir i limitar les quantitats d’aquesta nova divisa digital. 

Per una banda, es vol garantir que els euros en efectiu continuïn sent accessibles i àmpliament acceptats per totes les persones i negocis de tota la zona euro i, per l’altra, s’estableix el marc legal per a un possible euro digital com a complement dels bitllets i monedes en euros, que serà d’acceptació obligatòria en els comerços de l’eurozona, “excepte entre comerciants molt petits que optin per no acceptar pagaments digitals”.

Tranquil·litzar als bancs i als ciutadans

Segons les autoritats europees, les propostes presentades permetrien als ciutadans emmagatzemar fins a 3.000 euros digitals en moneders segurs que garantiran la privacitat. “Tenir un moneder digital en euros recarregat en el telèfon -o un altre dispositiu- serà el mateix que tenir monedes i bitllets en la butxaca. Podràs pagar amb la mateixa facilitat. Ni tan sols serà necessari tenir connexió a Internet“, apuntava durant la roda de premsa Valdis Dombrovskis, vicepresident executiu de la Comissió, però afegia que “la quantitat estaria subjecta a un límit màxim com a manera de protegir l’estabilitat financera i evitar sortides substancials de diners dels bancs”.

En aquest context, la protecció de la privacitat és una de les qüestions que més preocupen a l’Eurocambra, a les associacions de consumidors i als ciutadans que van deixar comentaris durant el període de consulta pública del projecte. El vicepresident de la Comissió afirma que no hem de patir per la nostra privacitat i protecció de dades que “les dades personals estarien totalment protegides. Els bancs, ni tan sols el BCE, no veurien ni podrien rastrejar les dades o detalls personals de la gent. Els pagaments sense connexió oferirien un nivell de privacitat similar al que ofereix avui els diners en efectiu”.

Això, però, és un punt contenciós entre els proponents i crítics d’aquestes mesures legislatives. Mentre que possibilitar pagaments fora de línia per a petits imports, en els quals no quedin registrats les dades del pagador i el beneficiari, pot garantir un cert nivell de privacitat, la tecnologia permet reconstruir aquestes transaccions si les autoritats pertinents ho requereixen. 

De la mateixa manera, no es pot garantir l’anonimat que ofereixen les transaccions en efectiu. Com admetia Christine Lagarde, presidenta del Banc Central Europeu, “L’anonimat total -com el que ofereix els diners en efectiu- no sembla una opció viable. Contravindria altres objectius de política pública, com garantir el compliment de les normes contra el blanqueig de capitals i lluitar contra el finançament del terrorisme. I també faria pràcticament impossible limitar l’ús de l’euro digital com a vehicle d’inversió”.

Centralització vs. descentralització

Tot i que l’euro digital podria ajudar a reduir l’economia submergida i el risc de frau gràcies a la completa traçabilitat sobre la major part de les transaccions, els governs tindrien un control sobre els nostres diners sense precedents. La qual cosa els permetria saber exactament com els gastem i els atorgaria la capacitat de parar pagaments o confiscar-los, com va passar amb les protestes dels camioners contra el govern canadenc. 

En aquest context, les criptomonedes ofereixen una alternativa a la banca centralitzada controlada per l’Estat, democratitzant la creació de moneda mentre dilueixen el monopoli bancari tradicional. A més, en termes pràctics, la introducció de les CBDC no acaba de ser entesa del tot per una ciutadania que, de fet, ja fa transaccions digitals bancàries i en el comerç diàriament a través dels mètodes de pagament existents.

I és precisament en aquest punt, on la suposada necessitat d’introduir un nou mètode de pagament, o encara més important, on els conceptes de privacitat, anonimat i llibertat que ara tenim amb els diners físics i les criptodivises poden ser decisius en determinar si la proposta d’un euro digital no és res més que una solució a la recerca d’un problema -almenys pel que pertoca als interessos dels ciutadans- que està destinada al fracàs a no ser que sigui imposada per la força.

11Onze Recomana Bitvavo, les criptomonedes de manera fàcil, segura i a baix preu.

In the first two months of the year, households withdrew 18 billion in deposits from Spanish banks in search of a better return on their money. Despite the ECB’s interest rate hike, large bank customers are receiving improved remuneration for their savings in dribs and drabs.

According to data published by the European Central Bank (ECB), of the 19 countries in the eurozone, banks in Spain and Cyprus were the only ones that began the year by reducing the remuneration they pay on deposits to their customers. While in the eurozone as a whole banks raised the rates on new deposits to an average of 1.65%, Spanish banks went from a remuneration of 0.64% in December 2022 to 0.59% in January this year.

The reaction was not long in coming as Spanish households responded to the rise in prices and the low profitability of deposits by withdrawing 13 billion from banks in January, and a further 5 billion in February. The balance stood at 986.2 billion, down 1.8% in the first two months of the year. The subsequent stock market collapse of Spanish banks triggered by the bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank and the collapse of Credit Suisse has only aggravated the loss of confidence in the liquidity of traditional banks and their ability to make the public’s money work for them.

The timid reaction of Spanish banks

The president of the ECB, Christine Lagarde, encouraged bank customers to go to their banks to demand an increase in interest rates: “Bank customers have to have this conversation with bankers and bankers have to be sensible if they want to keep their customers”.

Well, it seems that after the talks, even though some banks have reacted discreetly and with the odd campaign to improve the profitability of deposits and avoid the flight of customers, these deposits still do not offer higher yields than Treasury Bills or other products.

Although the ECB is not letting up, and the rise in interest rates is already at 3.5% in the eurozone, the median remuneration of new deposits from Spanish banks is still far from the rates offered by other European countries. And this situation is likely to remain so in the near future, since according to calculations made by elEconomista‘s financial sources, Spanish banks can only pay a maximum of 1.15% for their deposits in the next twelve months without ceasing to be profitable.

Households diversify savings

Even with the gradual reopening of the economy, the rising cost of living has evaporated a large part of the savings cushion accumulated by households during the sanitary crisis. In this context of precariousness, coupled with the low returns banks are offering on deposits, it is not surprising that people are looking for more profitable investment products or alternatives to protect their savings in the face of inflationary pressure.

The stock of household financial assets has been reduced by €53.431 billion, or -2%, a fall not seen since the early 2020s. Even so, the purchase of safe-haven assets such as precious metals, particularly gold, continues to boom. In this context, the purchase of gold is no longer seen only as an investment or a speculative instrument, but as one of the few options people have to safeguard their money.

Likewise, in the face of depressing economic growth forecasts, the rickety profitability of deposits and the possibility of a new banking crisis, products that ensure the short-term purchasing power of investors to achieve profits well above average inflation in Spain, seem increasingly attractive.

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Toni Mata, Content Director, Oriol Tafanell, Financial Director, and Càrol Rafales, from the 11Onze Product Team, present Gold Seed. The latest product that 11Onze has made available to its community so that you can generate profits by buying and selling the precious metal par excellence!

Since in order to have a harvest, you must first sow, at Preciosos 11Onze we offer you Gold Seed, a new product designed to make your savings grow in times of uncertainty. As Oriol Tafanell explains, “given the turbulence of the current economic situation, everyone has become frightened, the stock markets have fallen, but gold continues to rise in value”.

Preciosos 11Onze has been working for more than a year with a manager specialising in the sale and purchase of precious metals. The idea is very simple, “it consists of grouping several people interested in participating in a collective purchase of gold with the aim of obtaining a capital gain from the purchase and sale of this gold“, explains Càrol Rafales. For 12 months, your gold will be sold at the best times of the market to make a profit, and at the end of the year, we will see how the harvest has gone!

Staggered consolidations

The minimum investment is €4.000 and during the contracted period there will be quarterly reports to see the evolution of the investment you have made in this service. The aim of the purchases and sales is to achieve staggered consolidations of 2%. That is to say, “from the start of the contract, if the manager achieves a capital gain with the metal acquired, equal to or greater than 2%, this capital gain is consolidated,” says Rafales.

Making it clear that past gains do not guarantee future gains, the good performance of gold in periods of instability has been confirmed over the last few years. The product on which Gold Seed is based has generated returns well above those achieved with Spanish investment funds and has counteracted inflation, solidifying gold as the safe-haven asset par excellence.

You will find all the information about Gold Seed at Preciosos 11Onze.

Gold demand reached record highs over the past year and shows no sign of abating in 2023. Central bank purchases of gold are off to the best start to a year in more than a decade.

Concerns about contagion from the banking crisis in the United States, financial market volatility and geopolitical uncertainty have further heightened interest in gold, which is considered a safe-haven asset against any economic uncertainty. The upward trend is reflected by consumers, private investors, governments and central banks.

According to the latest data published by the World Gold Council (WGC), on a year-on-year basis, central banks have recorded net purchases of 125 tonnes of gold at the end of February this year. This is a figure not seen since at least 2010 and continues the upward trend experienced during 2022, ending the year with a record 1,136 tonnes of gold sold.

Therefore, this confirms that the gold market continues to receive support from the central banks of countries that want to diversify their reserves to shield their economies, which leads us to expect that the price of gold will continue to rise significantly throughout this year. The price of gold has risen by 9.2% in the first quarter of the year, a revaluation that is in line with Bank of America’s forecast of a 10% increase in the price of gold by 2023.

The big gold buyers

The increase in gold purchases has been driven largely by the relentless demand from China’s central bank and the Turkish central bank, with 25 and 22 tonnes added respectively in February, for a cumulative total of 2,050 and 587 tonnes representing 3.7% and 33% of their international reserves.

On the other hand, despite the ban on selling Russian gold in Western markets, the Central Bank of Russia continues to increase its gold reserves at a good pace. Although no specific data on its purchase schedule is available, it has disclosed that at the end of February 2023 it had 2,330 tonnes of gold reserves, 31 tonnes more than at the end of January 2022, representing 24% of Russia’s international reserves.

Gold purchases by central banks of countries such as Uzbekistan (8 tonnes), Singapore (7 tonnes) or India (3 tonnes) were added to the February net purchases figure. Kazakhstan’s central bank was the exception, reducing its gold reserves by 13 tonnes to a total of 342 tonnes. A deviation from the trend followed by the other banks need not be significant, given that central banks purchasing gold from local sources are often frequent sellers of gold.

Whether gold is accumulating as a reserve asset in the face of escalating hostilities in the US-China trade war, sanctions against Russia or instability in the Western banking sector, the sharp increase in buying has not gone unnoticed by geopolitical analysts. Could this accumulation of gold be a sign of a change in the international monetary system? Of a return to the gold standard? Of a new global crisis? Whatever the case, it is clear to central bankers that when things go wrong, nothing is as safe as gold.

Protecting savings with physical gold has been one of 11Onze’s main contributions to its community, and now the range of products is expanding. This is why, in the face of volatility, still high inflation and the growing crisis of confidence in the banking system, gold is once again strengthening its position as a safe-haven asset. Discover Gold Seed at Preciosos 11Onze.