Savers switching into mutual funds

Mutual funds are gaining ground in Europe. According to market analysis expert, Datamonitor, savers are switching money from bank accounts into funds. The amount of risk these investors are willing to take varies from country to country. Swedes and Britons are the riskiest investors in Europe, preferring pure equity funds, emerging markets and hedge funds. Irish, Belgian, Spanish and Swiss investors are the least likely to take on risk, preferring fully guaranteed mutual funds or low-risk bond funds. Europe still lags behind the US, where there is a highly developed equity culture and where savers of all ages are prepared to take on high risk for a good return, says Datamonitor.