According to a report from Reutors:
PARIS (Reuters) - Britons have far more money squirreled away in financial assets than people in other major western European countries, according to a study.
But the European savings institute said they need their greater paper wealth because they cannot rely on the state to provide for their needs in old age.
The report by the Observatoire de L'Epargne Europeene (OEE) on five major European countries - Britain, France, Germany, Spain and Italy - found the average Briton had 75,812 euros (51,500 pounds) in assets such as bank accounts, bonds, shares, mutual funds, life insurance and pensions in 2003.
Germans were next with 47,526 euros in financial assets per person followed by France and Italy while Spain had the lowest level at 30,916 euros.
However, the researchers, whose figures excluded housing assets, pointed out that Britain has one of the least generous state pension systems in Europe.
Private and company pension assets therefore needed to be higher to make up for an expected shortfall in retirement income.
According to figures by the European Federation for Retirement Provision, in 2002 Britain had almost 40 percent of Europe's total non-state pensions assets while France has just 1.9 percent, Italy 1.4 percent, Spain 1.9 percent and Germany 14.5 percent.
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