A study by JPMorgan Asset Management estimates the opportunity cost for Spanish households at €209 billion since 2020 for keeping money in liquidity. 41% do not consider investing or do not know how to do it.
Spanish households have lost €209 billion since 2020 by keeping their savings in liquidity instead of investing them in global stocks. This is stated in a report by JPMorgan Asset Management published this Monday on the occasion of Financial Education Day, promoted by the Bank of Spain, the CNMV, and the Ministry of Economy, according to finect.com.
The study, titled From Savers to Investors, is based on a survey by Opinium of 2,000 Spaniards aged between 18 and 65, within a sample of 17,000 households from nine European countries. The fieldwork was conducted in the second half of July 2026.
Spanish households hold €246 billion in current accounts, savings accounts, and deposits. That money is currently worth €268 billion. If it had been invested in global stocks, its value would be €477 billion, according to the manager's calculations.
The root of the problem, according to JPMorgan AM, is the lack of education. 41% of Spaniards acknowledge that they have not considered investing in the stock market or that, if they have, they do not know how. Additionally, 20% believe that cash offers better long-term returns than stocks.
"The reluctance to invest is depriving millions of Spaniards of the opportunity to grow their savings and achieve their long-term financial goals," stated Javier Dorado, General Director of JPMorgan Asset Management for Spain and Portugal.
Regarding where Spaniards keep most of their savings, excluding emergency funds, 25% mainly keep it in cash, 19% in stocks (compared to 21% in the European average), 15% in real estate, and 10% in pension funds.
The study detects a paradox: more than 60% of Spaniards say they have at least some confidence in their ability to make investment decisions, but that confidence does not correspond with their actual knowledge.
"The gap between perceived confidence and actual knowledge can lead to poorly founded investment decisions or, out of fear of losing money, to inaction that also has a cost," explained Lucía Gutiérrez-Mellado, Strategy Director of JPMorgan Asset Management for Spain and Portugal.
The lack of financial education is most noticeable in retirement planning. Only 25% of respondents follow a defined savings plan for that stage, and 22% have not yet started thinking about it. Among those aged 46 to 61, the group with the highest saving capacity, 23% do not have a retirement plan.
More than 60% of Spaniards believe they will be able to maintain their standard of living upon retirement, a percentage higher than the European average. The report warns that public debt and an aging population may complicate the maintenance of public pensions.
The JPMorgan AM Investor Confidence Index, compiled by Nielsen IQ among more than 1,300 savers over 30 years old, corresponding to the June 2026 wave, shows that 80% of those who keep most of their savings in liquidity are aware that they are losing purchasing power.
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