N26 has announced the launch of a state-subsidised private retirement account in Germany, with Franklin Templeton as investment partner.
N26 plans to make the product, known in Germany as the Altersvorsorgedepot, available from 1 January 2027, subject to regulatory certification. The account will sit directly within the N26 app, where customers can manage long-term retirement investments alongside their everyday banking, savings, and existing investments. Pre-registration opened in the app on 12 November 2026, giving existing customers the option to sign up before launch.
The account is N26’s first retirement product. It arrives as Germany prepares for a pension reform that introduces state-certified, capital market-based private retirement provision, with N26’s offering built around long-term investment in ETFs.
Franklin Templeton’s role and portfolio options
Franklin Templeton will act as N26’s exclusive investment and product partner for the Standard portfolio (Standarddepot). It will provide the underlying investment infrastructure, its proprietary ETF capabilities, and portfolio expertise. For the Self-directed portfolio (Selbstentscheiderdepot), Franklin Templeton will be one of several partners.
Customers can choose between the two models. The Standard portfolio follows a predetermined allocation split between two fund categories. The Self-directed portfolio lets customers assemble their own holdings from more than 300 funds supplied by Franklin Templeton, Amundi, Deutsche Asset Management (Xtrackers), and Vanguard. Clients who open a Standard portfolio by June 2027 will be permanently exempt from the N26 service fee.
Strategic context
N26 operates under a German banking licence and serves customers across 24 markets. The retirement account extends its mobile-first model from everyday banking into long-term pension provision. Mike Dargan, Chief Executive Officer at N26, described the German pension reform as a turning point that will allow millions of people to change how they plan for retirement. The company’s aim is to place retirement savings within the same app its customers already use for daily finances.
Jenny Johnson, Chief Executive Officer at Franklin Templeton, pointed to Germany’s savings culture and ageing population. In Johnson’s view, these make the shift from saving to investing increasingly important. The official noted that investing still feels complicated or inaccessible to many people, and that combining an asset manager’s expertise with a digital banking platform can lower those barriers.
