Ljubljana, 17 April (STA) - Slovenians prefer to save in bank deposits, however mutual funds have seen an increase in assets and savers. At the end of 2018 Slovenian households had 1.7 billion euros invested in mutual funds, said Karmen Rejc, director of the Slovenian Investment Fund Association.
The average European invests 10% or 5,800 euros of their assets in mutual funds, whereas in Slovenia that figure is lower, namely 6% or 900 euros, Rejc said at a news conference leading up to Friday's World Mutual Fund Day.
Matjaž Lorenčič, president of the Slovenian Investment Fund Association and Infond Investment Funds chairman, said that out of the over 20 billion euros in last year's bank deposits, between 250 and 300 million euros were lost due to inflation.
Slovenian asset managers manage approximately 2.7 billion euros in 100 mutual funds. Adding the assets in alternative funds and those managed based on contracts for the sound management of operational risk, this figure amounts to approximately 3.7 billion euros. The number of investors in mutual funds is approximately 450,000.
Slovenian mutual funds are managed by six companies. Last year they recorded an inflow of approximately 540 million euros, an outflow of 550 million euros. This year, cash flow is positive, according to Lorenčič.
There are 96 foreign mutual funds operating in Slovenia. These manage 211 million euros in assets.