Starting a business: Minimum capital in Germany
Germany: Starting a business: Minimum capital was 29.8% in 2019. ▼ Falling
Starting a business: Minimum capital in Germany, 2003–2019
Source: World Bank. Measured in % of income per capita.
Analysis
In 2019, starting a business: minimum capital in Germany stood at 29.8%. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.
The figure is down 3.9% on the previous year and down 27.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, starting a business: minimum capital in Germany peaked at 49.1% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 29.8%, in 2019.
Germany ranks 10th of 191 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.
Starting a business: Minimum capital in Germany, year by year
| Year | % of income per capita | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 49.1% | — |
| 2004 | 48.8% | -0.6% |
| 2005 | 47.6% | -2.5% |
| 2006 | 46.2% | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 42.8% | -7.4% |
| 2008 | 42.2% | -1.4% |
| 2009 | 40.8% | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 41.9% | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 40.2% | -4.1% |
| 2012 | 39.0% | -3.0% |
| 2013 | 37.8% | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 35.8% | -5.3% |
| 2015 | 33.9% | -5.3% |
| 2016 | 32.9% | -2.9% |
| 2017 | 32.4% | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 31.0% | -4.3% |
| 2019 | 29.8% | -3.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 45.4% | 40.8% | 49.1% | 7 |
| 2010s | 35.5% | 29.8% | 41.9% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Germany
- 7 Central African Republic 35.2% compare
- 8 Slovenia 34.3% compare
- 9 Libya 30.0% compare
- 11 Chad 25.3% compare
- 12 Switzerland 24.6% compare
- 13 Equatorial Guinea 22.8% compare
More private sector data for Germany
- Merchandise trade 65.5% (2025)
- Food imports 9.2% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 73.4% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 1.54 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 6.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 84.1% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 1.76 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 21,130 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.3493 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 5.24 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is starting a business: minimum capital in Germany?
- Starting a business: minimum capital in Germany was 29.8% in 2019, according to the World Bank.
- What is the highest starting a business: minimum capital recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 49.1% in 2003.
- What is the lowest starting a business: minimum capital recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 29.8% in 2019.
- How does Germany rank for starting a business: minimum capital?
- Germany ranks 10th out of 191 countries with data for 2019.
- Is starting a business: minimum capital rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Starting a business: Minimum capital (% of income per capita). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The paid-in minimum capital requirement re?ects the amount that the entrepreneur needs to deposit in a bank or with a third-party before registration or up to three months after incorporation. It is calculated as percentage of income per capita. Any legal limitation of the company’s operations or decisions related to the payment of the minimum capital requirement is recorded. In case the legal minimum capital is provided per share, it is assumed 5 shareholders own the company and the legal minimum capital is multiplied by 5 shares. If an economy requires a minimum capital but allows businesses to pay only a part of it before registration, only this part is recorded.