Germany's biggest pension reform in 20 years just passed the Bundestag on March 27, 2026. The Altersvorsorgedepot launches January 2027 and will affect tens of millions of citizens. But the last reform (Riester) failed because people didn't understand it: providers kept 35-45% of contributions, over 5 million contracts were cancelled.
The pattern repeats unless citizens have a voice in the room where rules are designed. beatvest addresses this at two levels. We build DIN-certified financial education embedded directly into bank apps, so citizens can understand and use the new system. And our co-founder Sophie Thurner works inside the political and regulatory processes, from BMF to the EU Commission, ensuring reforms are designed to serve users, not the financial industry.
This is a social breakthrough innovation: solving a massive structural problem where the default outcome is that millions of people lose wealth they were promised.
Banks make more money when their customers understand less. This is not a knowledge gap. It is a structural conflict of interest.
The evidence is clear: financial institutions deliberately make fees hard to understand. Gabaix & Laibson (2006) proved that firms rationally hide costs because no company profits from making its prices comparable. Carlin (2009) showed that providers write disclosures to be unreadable on purpose and design fee structures to be incomparable. deHaan et al. (2021) confirmed that high-fee funds create the most complex disclosures. The less a customer understands, the more they pay.
And it works: Lusardi & Mitchell (2014) found that financially literate consumers pay lower fees and avoid costly products. Choi et al. (2010) showed that in experiments, the more people understood about fees, the less they paid. In other words: every euro a consumer saves through education is a euro the financial industry loses. That is why no bank will solve this problem on its own.
The industry also fights to keep it this way at the political level. The financial lobby spends 120M+ EUR/year in Brussels with 1,700+ lobbyists (Corporate Europe Observatory). In 2023, the EU Commission proposed banning kickbacks, the hidden commissions that banks and insurers earn for recommending expensive products to their customers. The financial lobby killed the ban (Follow the Money 2024).
The Altersvorsorgedepot launches in January 2027. Bundestag passed the reform on March 27, 2026. Millions of Germans will be offered a new retirement savings vehicle, but there is no education infrastructure being built alongside it. No independent tool to compare products, understand fees, or evaluate whether a given offer is actually good. Without that, providers face no pressure to compete on price or transparency, and consumers will repeat the Riester pattern: 5 million cancelled contracts, providers retaining 35-45% of contributions (Finanzwende).
beatvest is building that infrastructure: a financial education system, distributed through banks, that gives users the knowledge to evaluate retirement products independently.
The system has two layers: an education platform built on a proven method, and a cost transparency engine. Both need to be built specifically for the Altersvorsorgedepot.
THE BEATVEST LEARNING METHOD (proven): We have developed and validated a white-label learning approach designed to live inside a bank's own app or website. Users never leave their bank. No separate download, no extra login. The method is built around DIN-certified micro-learning modules (1-3 minutes each), structured as a multi-level challenge format with daily tasks. Gamification (streaks, points, badges) and automated email flows keep users coming back. Every level ends with a concrete action: opening an account, starting a savings plan, increasing a contribution. Banks integrate this in three ways: via a simple link, embedded into their app, or through enterprise-grade secure infrastructure. Multiple bank partners are about to launch this system for general investing education. No personal data is stored. Hosted in Germany, DSGVO compliant.
ALTERSVORSORGEDEPOT EDUCATION (to be built): For the Altersvorsorgedepot, we apply this proven method to build a complete new learning experience dedicated to retirement savings: how fees compound over decades, how to compare AV-Depot products, what state subsidies are available, and what to watch out for when choosing a provider. This is not a few added modules. It is a full standalone journey designed specifically for the moment Germany asks its citizens to make one of the most important financial decisions of their lives.
COST TRANSPARENCY ENGINE (to be built): This is the new technical core. Today, every AV-Depot product comes with a legally required information sheet. These sheets are dense, written in financial jargon, and nearly impossible to compare. Our engine reads these documents automatically, extracts the actual fee structures, and calculates what each product truly costs in euros over 10, 20, and 40 years.
The method: learn first, then see the numbers, then decide.
beatvest's USP is the combination of four elements that no competitor has simultaneously:
Regulatory access with no conflicts of interest. Sophie Thurner is one of very few independent voices shaping retail investor regulation at the highest levels: FCA, SEC, FSB, and IOSCO experience, with active access to BMF, the EU Commission, and the Brussels Economics Forum 2026. The financial industry spends 120M EUR/year and deploys over 1,700 lobbyists to influence the rules. Sophie operates outside that system. She is a major reason new regulations account for the end user, not just the institution.
Embedded at the point of decision. beatvest runs inside bank apps via white-label integration. Education reaches the user when they are about to invest, not days before or after.
Structural alignment. Revenue comes from licensing the education layer, not from commissions on products sold. Zero incentive to push any particular asset.
DIN-certified quality standard. beatvest is the only digital provider certified under DEFINO (DIN 77230). This matters to bank compliance teams and regulators alike.
No competitor combines independent regulatory influence, bank-embedded distribution, conflict-free revenue, and a recognized quality certification.
WHAT EXISTS TODAY:
Technology: Production-ready white-label web app with 13 levels, 40+ modules, gamification (streaks, points, badges), interactive quizzes, and CRM email automation. Hosted on AWS Frankfurt, DSGVO compliant. Three integration tiers from standalone to enterprise, compatible with bank-grade security environments.
Content: 40+ DIN-certified learning modules (DEFINO certified, only digital financial education provider in Germany with this certification). WpHG and MiFID-II compliant. Created by experts with FCA and SEC background.
Distribution: Bank partnerships in advanced stages with a top-5 German universal bank, one of Germany's largest cooperative banks, a robo-advisory arm of a major savings bank group, and a leading European ETF provider. Integration work underway, first deployments targeting 2026. Further negotiations with additional partners.
Track record: B2C app since 2021. 4.8/5 App Store rating (~1,000 reviews). Apple App of the Day. Focus Money Award (best finance app DACH). WIRED Hottest Startups Europe.
Policy access: Sophie Thurner invited panelist at Brussels Economics Forum 2026 (DG FISMA), co-authored FSB/IOSCO policy papers, regular BMF expert, FDP Grundsatzprogramm panel member, HoFT Berlin board member, co-authored 2025 pension reform position paper.
WHAT NEEDS TO BE BUILT:
1) A holistic, Altersvorsorgedepot-specific learning system that plugs directly into bank products (pension product comparison, fee mechanics, state subsidy optimization)
2) Cost transparency engine: automated analysis and comparison of AV-Depot product costs
3) Integration of transparency data into the education journey at the decision point
4) Measurement framework linking education completion to product choice quality
Yes. beatvest has validated core functionality and market demand across multiple dimensions.
CONTENT PROOF: beatvest is the only digital financial education provider in Germany certified under DIN 77230 (DEFINO), confirming institutional-grade quality for financial literacy content.
CONSUMER PROOF: B2C app has a 4.8/5 App Store rating across ~1,000 reviews, was named Apple App of the Day, and received the Focus Money Award and WIRED Hottest Startups recognition. Users engage with complex financial content at scale.
ENGAGEMENT PROOF: Completion rates and return usage demonstrate that gamified, structured financial education retains users where static content fails. The product is live, iterated, and tested in a real consumer market.
POLICY PROOF: Co-founder Sophie Thurner was invited to present at the Brussels Economics Forum 2026, advises the BMF, and sits on the board of the House of Finance and Technology (HoFT). Institutional recognition of the problem beatvest is solving.
WHAT REMAINS TO BE PROVEN: Deployment within bank infrastructure at scale. Bank partnerships are in active pipeline but not yet live. The open question is whether B2C engagement translates into measurable behavior change within B2B distribution. This is what the SPRIND project will validate.
Total project budget: EUR 400,000 over 6 months (mid-2026 to beginning of 2027, aligned with AV-Depot launch).
MILESTONE 1 - FOUNDATION & CONTENT (Months 1-2, EUR 120,000)
WP1: Full Altersvorsorgedepot learning experience designed, written, and expert-reviewed. Cost transparency engine architecture defined, data sources mapped. First pilot bank partner in confirmation process. DEFINO certification initiated.
MILESTONE 2 - ENGINE & INTEGRATION (Months 3-4, EUR 160,000)
WP2: Cost transparency engine MVP processing AV-Depot products. DEFINO certification obtained. Transparency data integrated into education journey. First bank partner integration live with beta users. Includes engine development (EUR 90K) and platform integration (EUR 70K).
MILESTONE 3 - LAUNCH & IMPACT (Months 5-6, EUR 120,000)
WP3: Full product launch with first bank partner, timed to AV-Depot market launch (Jan 2027). Second partner integration started. First impact data collected (user comprehension, product choice patterns). Policy recommendations prepared for BMF based on initial user data.
beatvest has raised EUR 2,921,000 across five convertible loan agreement (CLA) rounds between 2021 and 2025. Investors include APX (Axel Springer/Porsche), Main Incubator (Commerzbank's innovation unit), sino Beteiligungen, and a network of strategic angels from banking and tech. This capital funded everything that exists today: the B2C app, the white-label platform, bank partnerships, DIN certification, and the team. The core B2B product is built and generating revenue.
Private capital will not fund this project. Not because it lacks potential, but because venture capital funds companies that work with existing market structures, not against them.
Few venture investors are willing to fund this project further. The structural reason: we make fees transparent, we educate consumers to choose cheaper products, and we sit inside government processes to ensure regulation protects citizens, not providers. Every success we have makes the existing system less profitable for the incumbents who run it. The more successfully beatvest educates users, the more it strengthens the entire market, including competitors. Private capital will not fund this project because it cannot own the outcome.
Public funding through standard grant programs does not match the ambition or speed required. beatvest needs a partner that understands mission-driven innovation at the intersection of financial infrastructure and social impact, where market mechanisms alone are insufficient. That is precisely the space SPRIND.SOCIETY was designed for.
Success during implementation means measurable progress across three dimensions: reach, comprehension, and institutional adoption.
REACH (during): Number of bank partners integrating the system (target: 2 by launch). Number of citizens completing AV-Depot education modules (target: 50,000+ in first 6 months post-launch). Number of AV-Depot products in the transparency engine database.
COMPREHENSION (during): Pre/post quiz scores measuring understanding of fee mechanics, product comparison, and subsidy optimization. We already run quizzes in our existing modules. Applying the same methodology to AV-Depot content gives us a direct measure of whether citizens actually understand what they are choosing.
COST IMPACT (during): Measurable difference in average product costs chosen by educated vs. non-educated users. If a citizen who completed our journey selects a product with 0.3% lower fees on average, that is EUR 22,500 in additional retirement savings over 40 years per person (at 200 EUR/month, 6% return).
ADOPTION RISK: Banks may resist integrating truly transparent cost comparison tools because transparency could steer customers toward lower-margin products. Mitigation: We are in advanced partnership negotiations with banks and position education as a compliance and customer retention tool, not a threat. Banks that offer transparency will attract cost-conscious customers from competitors. Early adopters gain a trust advantage.
REGULATORY TIMING: The Altersvorsorgedepot launches January 2027. If product specifications or fee structures change during the legislative process, our content and transparency engine need to adapt. Mitigation: Our content pipeline already includes regulatory update cycles (we update for WpHG and MiFID-II changes). DEFINO certification includes review processes. Sophie's direct access to BMF and legislative process gives us early visibility on changes.
INDUSTRY PUSHBACK: The financial lobby may resist standardized cost transparency as it undermines their ability to differentiate through complexity. We saw this with the EU inducement ban. Mitigation: We are building a tool for consumers, not a regulatory mandate. Adoption is voluntary through bank partnerships.
SCALE: Reaching millions of Germans requires significant bank adoption. Mitigation: We don't need to partner with every bank. The top 10 banks cover the majority of retail customers. Each successful integration proves the model for the next, and our pipeline already includes several of these institutions.
The problem has never been solved because every existing approach addresses only one piece while leaving the system intact.
MEDIA EDUCATION (Finanztip, Finanzfluss): Reaches millions, but only those who actively search. The most vulnerable (low literacy, low income, women with 12-point gap) never find it. Finanztip earns via affiliate links, creating subtle incentive tension. Content is generic, disconnected from the decision moment.
BANK DISCLOSURES (BIBs/KIDs): Legally mandated but academically proven to be deliberately complex. Carlin (2009) showed providers use "narrative complexity" (unreadable writing) and "structural complexity" (incomparable structures) as rent-extraction tools. deHaan et al. (2021) confirmed high-fee funds create unnecessarily complex disclosures. The bank's "transparency" is designed to obscure.
GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES: The BMF/BMBF launched a National Financial Education Initiative in 2023. It raises awareness but changes nothing at the point of decision. No technology, no bank integration, no feedback loop. Awareness without action.
CONSUMER ADVOCACY (Verbraucherzentrale, Finanzwende): Essential political work. Finanztip's petition gathered 100K signatures in 3 days. But they operate outside the distribution chain. They can pressure politicians but cannot intervene when a consumer is choosing a product inside their bank app.
COMPARISON SITES (Check24, Verivox): Commission-based. Christoffersen & Musto (2002) showed fund pricing exploits unsophisticated demand. Comparison sites are part of the same incentive structure, steering toward products that pay highest commissions.
None of these operates where education, distribution, incentive alignment, and policy access intersect.
Every existing player serves the same user: someone who already cares about finance, actively searches for information, and is willing to invest time in self-education. Research confirms this is a self-selection effect: those who voluntarily engage with financial education are already more future-oriented and knowledgeable than the general population.
FINANZTIP / FINANZFLUSS: Excellent reach among self-directed learners who actively search for financial content. But this is the fundamental limitation: you have to find them first. The OECD (2024) found that in Germany, women have lower financial knowledge and confidence than men, and few financial education initiatives address this gap. Finanztip's own survey shows 1 in 3 men rate their financial knowledge as good, but only 1 in 5 women. These platforms do not reach the people who need education most, because those people are not searching for it.
VERBRAUCHERZENTRALE / GELD VERSTEHEN (Bundesbank): Trusted, high-quality. Same structural problem: you must seek them out. No technology, no bank integration, no point-of-decision delivery.
COMPARISON SITES (Check24, Verivox): Commission-based. Steering toward products that pay the highest commissions, not the lowest-cost products.
THE UNSERVED USER: The person who will open an AV-Depot because their bank offers it, who has never watched a finance video, never visited Finanztip, and will choose whatever their advisor recommends. This is the majority. This is who loses 75,000 EUR over 40 years to fee differences they never understood. No existing player reaches this user, because no existing player is embedded inside the bank app at the moment of decision. That is what beatvest builds.
The direct beneficiaries are every German citizen eligible for the Retirement Savings Account (Altersvorsorgedepot). Tens of millions of people who will make pension product choices starting January 2027.
The stakes are enormous at the individual level: 75,000 EUR difference in retirement savings between a 0.5% and 1.5% fee product over 40 years (200 EUR/month, 6% return). Multiply that across millions of citizens and the collective cost of confusion runs into the billions.
Those hit hardest without this project: women (60% vs. 48% financial literacy in Germany, GFLEC 2017), low-income households (significantly lower literacy scores, OECD 2024), and young adults making their first pension decision with no frame of reference. These are exactly the groups that media-based education never reaches because they do not seek it out. Our embedded approach meets them where they already are: inside their bank app, at the moment of decision.
Our paying customers are banks distributing AV-Depot products. They need compliant, scalable education infrastructure to serve mass-market customers they cannot profitably advise one-on-one. We are in active pipeline conversations with multiple bank partners including a top-5 universal bank and one of Germany's largest cooperative banks.
Regulators (BMF, BaFin) benefit from fewer mis-selling complaints, better-informed citizens, and structured data on consumer comprehension that currently does not exist. Sophie's presence inside these institutions means the data feedback loop is not theoretical. It is already connected to the people who write the rules.
The social impact compounds: every citizen who chooses a lower-fee product keeps more of their own money. Every data point from their education journey gives regulators evidence to write better policy. Better policy protects the next generation. This is not a one-time intervention. It is infrastructure.
Without us, the Altersvorsorgedepot launches into a world where no one is building education around it. Millions of people default to expensive products again because they are being pushed by providers, not because they chose them. The same pattern repeats: complexity serves the industry, not the citizen.
With us, people develop actual financial literacy instead of blindly trusting others with their retirement. When you are financially literate, you choose ETFs and low-cost products, because you understand what fees do to your wealth over 30 years. And once you understand why that matters for your Altersvorsorgedepot, you understand why it matters for the rest of your money too.
That is the shift. The Altersvorsorgedepot becomes the trigger point that turns Germany from a savings culture into an investing culture. Today, only 17% of Germans invest in stocks, funds, or ETFs. In this scenario, that number doubles, because people finally understand why they should.
Two co-founders, supported by development and content teams.
SOPHIE THURNER (Co-CEO): Former FCA/SEC regulator. Sits inside the political system as an invited expert: BMF, EU Commission Brussels Economics Forum 2026, FDP Grundsatzprogramm panel, HoFT Berlin board, co-author of FSB/IOSCO policy papers and the 2025 pension reform position paper. She is one of very few independent consumer voices in these regulatory processes and a major reason citizen interests are represented alongside industry.
JULIA KRUSLIN (Co-CEO): Built beatvest from concept to production. Leads product strategy and technical architecture, drives B2B business development, and manages bank partnerships and technical integrations end to end.
WHERE WE NEED CAPACITY: Access to policymakers and banks to amplify distribution. We run founder-led sales, which gives us credibility and deep relationships but limits how many conversations we can run in parallel. We do not yet have the resources to employ a dedicated sales team. SPRIND's network and institutional backing would accelerate the number of bank partnerships and policy integrations we can pursue simultaneously.
1) CROSS-MINISTRY CREDIBILITY: We already work with BMF, BMBF, and the EU Commission. A SPRIND mandate signals legitimacy across federal institutions and accelerates conversations with banks, Sparkassen, and Volksbanken who move faster when a government-backed initiative is involved, not just a startup.