Invest in Germany Summit 2026: Berlin Attracts Capital

<p>While France has been attracting international capital providers to Versailles for years with its annual investor summit, Germany is now following suit: On October 19 and 20, 2026, the <strong>Invest in Germany Summit</strong> will take place in Berlin. The federal government wants to send a clear signal to global investors – and for the first time is competing with a comparable format against the French model.</p><h2>A New Format for Germany's Business Location</h2><p>The summit is intended as a central platform to attract international capital to Germany as a business location. The focus is on the question of how to improve investment conditions in times of economic upheaval. Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz formulates the goal of the format clearly: "My cabinet members and I welcome you to Germany to discuss business opportunities for your company and how we can reform our country to facilitate your investments."</p><p>Federal Minister for Economy and Energy Katherina Reiche adds the economic policy framework: "The federal government is unleashing Germany's economic potential in times of change. Network with us and benefit from forward-looking industries and access to the world's largest domestic market, the European Union." To support location communication, the federal government has also engaged a dedicated location ambassador, former Commerzbank CEO Martin Blessing – a step that shows how seriously the federal government takes international investor outreach.</p><h2>Program: From Opening to Bilateral Meetings</h2><p>The two-day program follows a clear structure. The first day begins at 8:00 a.m. with admission and accreditation, followed by the opening session "Re-engineering Germany" between 9:30 and 10:45 a.m. Federal Chancellor Merz will deliver the opening address, before business representatives present their perspective under the title "Why Germany?" This program point is open to the press.</p><h3>Expert Sessions with the Federal Government</h3><p>Between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., the topic block "Meet the Government: Exploring Opportunities" follows. Investors meet government representatives in sector-specific rounds – for example on Industrial AI & Semiconductors, where Minister Reiche appears together with Siemens CEO Roland Busch. In parallel, another session focuses on Finance & Investments. These formats are exclusively reserved for registered guests who have the opportunity to arrange bilateral meetings in advance.</p><h2>Closing Session and Networking</h2><p>The second day of the event concludes with the closing session "Growing together" from 2:15 p.m. to 3:15 p.m., in which a spotlight panel of government and business representatives has its say, before Federal Chancellor Merz concludes the event with a review. Following this, from 3:15 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., networking takes center stage: In further bilateral meetings, common interests are to be explored, new partnerships forged, and existing networks strengthened. At 5:30 p.m., the summit officially ends.</p><h3>Comparison to the French Model</h3><p>The parallels to the French Choose France format, which President Emmanuel Macron has been successfully using for investor recruitment for years, are unmistakable. With the new summit, Germany is clearly positioning itself as an alternative in the European competition for international capital – although critics note that merely copying the French model alone is unlikely to be enough to convince investors in the long term. What will be decisive is whether announcements translate into concrete projects.</p><h2>Conclusion: Starting Shot for a New Location Offensive</h2><p>With the Invest in Germany Summit, the federal government is creating a high-profile format for the first time that specifically addresses international investors and deliberately focuses on direct exchange between politics and business. Whether the summit actually leads to a turning point in foreign direct investment will only become clear in the coming years. What is clear, however, is that with dates on October 19 and 20, 2026 in Berlin, Germany has established a format that could in future become a permanent fixture in the European economic policy calendar – and that enriches the German trade fair and congress landscape with another high-profile format.</p>