As an economist who enjoys getting back to her Ph.D. roots, I want to also address how traditional economic theory about consumer behavior and corporate governance are, at times, in apparent conflict with the practices that we observe. This in turn raises issues about the appropriate economic and policy frameworks for decisionmaking.
This clearly proves that we have an emerging equity culture. What is equally important is the changing structure of shareholdings in Germany. Investment funds, private households and foreign investors have a rising share, while the former dominance of companies as shareholders has vanished. The old picture of “Germany Incorporated” is disappearing and a market-based culture is emerging.