Malta ranks as 11th richest EU country

The average citizen in Malta has a net financial wealth placing them as the 11th richest amongst those of other EU countries, according to new data compiled by Denmark's central bank.

The data, which is itself extracted from European Central Bank disclosures of financial accounts for the final quarter of 2020, covering all 27 EU member states, placed Danes at the top of the pile, with Romanians found to be the poorest in the EU.

The data was presented in Danish Kroner, and figures were provided for assets and liabilities, showing that Maltese people had an average of kr380,000 (€51,000) in net wealth, surmounting their Spanish (kr290,000/ €39,000), Finnish (kr270,000/ €36,000), and Portuguese (kr240,000/ €32,000) peers.

Malta's ranking was helped by its low average liabilities – kr140,000 (€19,000) – which was lower than the EU average of kr180,000 (€24,000).

Maltese citizens' assets too, were significantly below the EU average, with the average Maltese citizen having kr520,000 (€70,000), compared to the kr630,000 (€85,000) average recorded across Europe.

Trailing Denmark at the top of the table was the Netherlands, where net wealth was kr1,130,000 (€152,000), followed by Sweden (kr1,080,000/ €145,000).

Danish households' net financial wealth was recorded to stand at kr1,320,000 (€177,000), nearly three times the EU average.

According to the Danish central bank's analysis, Danish households typically had higher debts than their European peers, but the majority of Danes' liabilities were in mortgage debt.

"Thus", it commented, "debt is largely offset by the value of housing wealth which is not included in financial wealth".

The impacts of COVID-19 or the recent greylisting of Malta by the Financial Action Task Force on local residents' wealth remains to be seen, however, recent economic projections bode well.