In the world of finance and investment, Amsterdam and the Netherlands play a role much larger than their physical size relative to other financial centres.
Outward looking
Amsterdam has always been outward looking and has developed a formidable arr financial servio international companies. The Netherlands, described as the gateway to Europe because of the goods that move through the ports of Rotterdam and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, is also in effect a financial door into Europe for companies wishing to conquer the European Market.
More than Amsterdam
Dutch finance is concentrated mainly in Amsterdam. The capital, clearly the focal point of the country's financial and investment community, is undergoing a shift as financial institutions move to the urban outskirts. The city-centre, with its canals, is still lined with venerable banking houses. ABN AMRO, on the other hand, is now located in Amsterdam-Zuidoost, a modern district in the south eastern corner of the city. The bank is about to build a new headquarters in Amsterdam-Zuid, or south Amsterdam, making it a close neighbour of ING Group and putting it within ten minutes, driving distance of Schiphoi Airport.
Other financial players are located outside Amsterdam. Robeco, Europe's biggest independent fund manager is firmly rooted in Rotterdam. The group has some 72 billion guilders under management in a variety of mutual funds. A third of the money represents funds entrusted to Robeco by institutional investors, the rest is from private investors.
All told, the Robeco group looks after the investments of more than 700,000 private shareholders.
Triple A rated Rabobank is headquartered in Utrecht. The country's single largest investor, the civil servants' pension fund ABP is in the city of Heerien, in the southern tip of the Netherlands close to the Belgian border.
Foreign banks
Most newcomers to the Netheriands'financial sector and particularly the growing number of foreign banks and brokerages, tend to base themselves in Amsterdam - in particular along the canals in the prestigious centre of the city.
The pension fund industry is the major holder of shares in the Netherlands with private individuals far less likely to buy shares than their US counterparts. Some 30 percent of shares traded on the Amsterdam Exchanges NV are in private hands, but the country does not yet have the same equity culture as the Anglo Saxon world.
More private investors
However, the Stock Exchange Chairman, Baron Boudewijn van lttersum, believes share buying will rise among private investors for two reasons. "The younger generation is likely to be more involved in building up their own financial assets to prepare for retirement," he said. At the same time the Netherlands is beginning to witness the advent of discount broking similar to the traditions of the US and the UK. "This too will stimulate private buying of shares," he argued.
Modern-day Amsterdam has obvious strengths as a financial centre - a multilingual workforce, close proximity to the rest of Europe and a strong trading position. One of the Netherlands' chief attractions as a financial centre is its currency. Virtually pegged to the German mark, the guilder is one of the world's strongest currencies, buttressed by low inflation and safeguarded by an independent central bank, De Nederiandsche Bank. It is attractions such as these that will help ensure that the country maintains its role as an important financial doorway into Europe.
For further information on the Amsterdam Exchanges NV, please contact; Thom Hoedemakers, Director of Communications, Amsterdam Exchanges NV, Buersplein 5, 1012 JW Amsterdam, Netherlands, Tel: +31 20 523 4014, Fax: +31 20 523 4950, or enter text search 'Amsterdam Exchanges NV' and 'Business Monitor'.
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ARTICLE
23 February 1996