Cypriots do not trust bank employees for advice on their finances compared to other EU citizens, but they believe in advertising material more, according to a Eurobarometer.
The Eurobarometer examined the relationship of Europeans with financial services, especially amid the ever-increasing digitization of the economic sector.
Data also shows that Cypriots do not want to use their savings and investments to finance environmentally harmful activities but believe they do not have enough information if this is happening.
The main sources of information used by Cypriots to make decisions about their personal finances are specialized guidance from magazines or an evaluation service (40% in Cyprus, 36% in the EU), recommendations from friends, relatives and acquaintances (34%, 35% in the EU) and advertisements and brochures with information on specific banking products and services (24%, 14% EU).
Although they trust the advertisements of banking institutions, Cypriots do not trust the recommendations of bank employees or other financial advisors (17%).
This option is the most popular in the EU, with 45%.
Only 8% in Cyprus and 5% in the EU are influenced by information on social media and influencers.
In response to questions about sustainable finance, 39% of Cypriots and 24% in the EU said they strongly agreed their savings and investments should not be used to finance activities with a negative environmental impact.
However, only 34% in Cyprus and the EU state are certain or relatively certain they know whether their savings and investments are used in environmentally sustainable activities.
On the other hand, 46% in Cyprus and 29% in the EU said that they receive information on the environmental impact of their investments.
Some 79% of Cypriots (86% EU) said they feel comfortable managing their personal finances, while 77% of Cypriots (72% EU) said they feel comfortable using websites and apps for their banking activities.
Also, 9% in Cyprus (12% EU) said they have a bank account in another member state.
Cyprus is also well above the average in the percentage of bank customers who bought a product such as investments in another member state (38% in Cyprus, 15% EU).
The results of the Eurobarometer vary considerably from country to country but also according to age, gender and educational level.
In addition, 32% of Cypriots (19% in the EU) responded positively to whether their economic rights have been violated in the context of interaction with a banking organization.
Of these, 34% of Cypriots (34% EU) filed a complaint with the provider; however, only 4% complained to the competent national authority (16% EU) and only 4% resorted to a consumer protection association (10% EU).
Data also show differences in how consumers use ATMs or online banking services, although Cyprus is close to the average.
Regarding the use of ATMs, 55% of Cypriots (46% EU) stated they could easily find a machine, 32% of Cypriots (40% EU) answered “somewhat easily”, 8% in Cyprus (10% EU) answered “somewhat difficult” and 5% of Cypriots (3% EU) answered “very difficult”.