Leibniz Institute For Financial Research Safe

Name

Leibniz Institute For Financial Research Safe

Legal name

Leibniz-Institut für Finanzmarktforschung SAFE e.V.

Website

https://safe-frankfurt.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Research & Policy Advisory

NAICS

Finance and Insurance (52)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSACAGAC

Macro & Rates Research

Financial & Insurance/Capital Markets & Securities/Securities Research & Analytics

Keywords

• Financial market research
• Policy advisory services
• Academic finance research
• Sentiment index analysis
• Financial databases

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Institutional Funding: Core institutional funding from German federal and state governments through the Leibniz Association membership. Basic institutional support for research operations.
2. Project-Based Research Grants: Drittmittel-funded research projects from various funding bodies including LOEWE, DFG, European Patent Office (EPO), EU Horizon programs, Academies Program, and others.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Leibniz Institute SAFE conducts independent academic and policy-oriented research on financial markets, financial intermediation, household finance, macro finance, and law & finance. It produces peer-reviewed publications, the monthly SAFE Manager Sentiment Index derived from textual analysis of corporate disclosures, and policy publications for regulators. The institute also maintains a Data Center providing financial databases and historical data infrastructure to researchers.

Product overview

The Leibniz Institute SAFE is a financial research institute offering a portfolio of interconnected research products and services. Its core offerings include the SAFE Manager Sentiment Index (a text-based analytical tool measuring corporate sentiment from earnings calls), the Data Center (providing financial databases and historical data), the Policy Center (producing policy publications and white papers for regulators), and the SAFE Finance Blog (disseminating research insights). The LawLab – Fintech & AI initiative focuses on technology and regulation. The institute also publishes academic research through its Published Papers and Working Papers series. These offerings are integrated through the institute's research departments covering Financial Intermediation, Financial Markets, Household Finance, Macro Finance, and Law & Finance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SAFE Manager Sentiment Index A monthly research data product measuring sentiment of managers at publicly listed German companies. It is constructed by applying computational linguistics and textual analysis to financial reports and earnings conference call transcripts, providing insights into top management perspectives and serving as a predictor of future stock market returns.
• Policy Center A research and policy advisory service that produces policy publications, policy letters, and white papers addressing financial regulation, market integration, and economic policy. It operates a Policy Advisory Council and Senior Fellows program to transfer research findings to policymakers and regulators.
• Data Center A research data service offering access to financial databases, scheduling tools, and tutorial videos. It provides structured corporate information and financial metrics of German enterprises over extended historical periods to support academic and applied financial research.
• Published Papers & Working Papers Academic publication output consisting of peer-reviewed papers in leading journals (including Management Science, Science, and Review of Financial Studies) and working papers covering topics in financial intermediation, asset pricing, household finance, macro finance, and law and finance.
• LawLab – Fintech & AI A research initiative examining the intersection of law, financial technology, and artificial intelligence, addressing regulatory and legal implications of emerging technologies in finance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Manager Sentiment Index is a strong predictor of future stock market returns
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026SAFE and CEPR jointly organize policy web seminars, including the SAFE-CEPR Policy Web Seminar series featuring ECB researchers presenting the Financial Stability Review and other policy-relevant research topics.
• Frankfurt AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024SAFE is one of 16 institutions from the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region that have joined to form the Frankfurt Alliance network. The alliance aims to network research institutions more closely, provide joint support for transformation processes with academic expertise, and act as a unified source of policy advice. Partner institutions include Goethe University Frankfurt, DIPF, PRIF, Senckenberg, GSI Helmholtz Center, several Fraunhofer and Max Planck Institutes, ESI, PEI, and DKTK.
• Goethe University FrankfurtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAFE is located within the House of Finance at Goethe University Frankfurt's Campus Westend. The institute maintains close ties with the university's finance department, with researchers holding joint appointments and supervising PhD students through the Doctoral Program in Law, Finance, and Economics.
• University of MannheimmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institution in the GerHisFin project (Finance and Business Research from a Long-Term Perspective), along with Mannheim University Library, Institute for Banking and Financial History (IBF), and Otto Beisheim School of Management.
• Leibniz AssociationcoreOthersSAFE is a member of the Leibniz Association (Leibniz-Gemeinschaft), a network of non-university research institutions. This membership provides institutional funding and represents SAFE as part of Germany's research infrastructure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• DIW Berlin (German Institute for Economic Research): Berlin-based Leibniz economic research institute producing empirical research and policy advice on macroeconomics, finance, and household economics; directly comparable to SAFE in governance, funding, publication model, and customer base (policymakers + academia).
• National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER): US private, non-profit research organization that is the leading producer of empirical economic and finance research with strong policy influence; analogous to SAFE in mission (rigorous empirical research informing policymakers), output model (working papers, programs), and international standing.
• ZEW – Centre for European Economic Research: Mannheim-based Leibniz economic research institute with explicit finance-and-markets expertise (similar to SAFE's Financial Markets and Macro Finance departments); comparable scale, funding model, and policy-advisory posture toward European regulators.
• Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE): Washington-based non-profit producing policy-oriented research on international finance, capital markets, and regulation; comparable to SAFE in serving as an independent, academic-grade voice informing central-bank and regulatory decision-making across major economies.
• Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR): London-based network organizing top-tier economic and finance research; SAFE is already a CEPR partner (joint policy web seminars) and CEPR functions as a close analogue — funding-funnel, research-network operator, and policy-broker between academia and central banks/regulators.
• ifo Institute: Munich-based Leibniz economic research institute conducting policy-relevant empirical research; directly comparable to SAFE in organizational model (Leibniz e.V., government-funded, open access publications) and in producing indices and policy advice used by German and European decision-makers.
• Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS): UK-based microeconomic and fiscal-policy research institute producing independent, evidence-based analysis for parliament, regulators, and the public; directly comparable to SAFE in producing data-driven research that is actively consumed by European policymakers.

Broad incumbents

• Brookings Institution: Larger, broader US policy-research organization covering economics among many policy areas; relevant as an incumbent comparator given its policy-advisory influence, but its remit is much wider than SAFE's finance-markets specialization.

Others

• European Central Bank – Research: Frankfurt-based central bank with a sizeable research function producing working papers and the Financial Stability Review that SAFE often analyzes or co-presents; similar subject-matter focus but SAFE operates as an independent academic counterpart rather than a monetary authority.
• Bank for International Settlements (BIS) – Research: Basel-based central-bank forum whose research and working papers (BIS Working Papers, IFC reports on financial stability) directly overlap SAFE's Macro Finance and Law & Finance work; comparable in subject matter but institutionally a central-bank body rather than an independent research institute.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SAFE_Frankfurt
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UClEfa56TsDDTtjVfyF6R1Ew
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/researchcentersafe
• Instagraminstagram.com/science.festival.frankfurt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Leibniz Institute For Financial Research Safe