Insurer Die Bayerische Hijacks a Scalable Billboard in Munich With 'Are You Advised?'
Updated: 6 days ago
TL;DR: Insurer Die Bayerische staged an overnight guerrilla stunt at Munich's Stachus, projecting 'Bist du beraten?' (Are you advised?) over neobroker Scalable Capital's pension-depot ad to argue that retirement planning needs more than an app.
A Billboard Hijack
Insurer Die Bayerische ran an overnight guerrilla action at Stachus in Munich, reported on 17 September 2026. It overlaid Scalable Capital's ad line 'Bist du besteuert?' (Are you taxed?) with 'Bist du beraten?' (Are you advised?), adding the line that retirement planning needs more than an app.
The move directly targeted the neobroker's ETF-and-app pitch, on the neobroker's own advertising turf.
Advice Versus App
Board member Martin Gräfer framed the argument carefully: 'Digital versus advice is the wrong debate. We need both.' The stunt is a positioning statement — that human advice still matters — dressed as a piece of cheeky media theatre.
It lands amid Germany's live debate over the new state pension depot, giving the intervention topical bite.
Incumbents Fight Back
This is a sharp example of an incumbent financial brand using guerrilla tactics to challenge a fintech disruptor rather than ceding the narrative. Instead of a defensive brand campaign, Die Bayerische picked a fight in public.
Guerrilla works here because it borrows the challenger's energy — the incumbent momentarily behaves like the upstart, which is disarming.
Marketing Minute's Take
Attacking a named competitor is risky, but Die Bayerische softened it smartly: 'we need both' invites the audience in rather than picking a zero-sum fight. The lesson for incumbents is that you don't have to out-spend a disruptor — you can out-manoeuvre it. One clever overlay bought more attention than a month of conventional insurance advertising.
Quick FAQ
What did Die Bayerische do?
It staged an overnight guerrilla stunt at Munich's Stachus, projecting 'Bist du beraten?' (Are you advised?) over Scalable Capital's pension-depot ad to argue that retirement planning needs more than an app.
Why target Scalable Capital?
Die Bayerische is positioning human advice against the neobroker's app-and-ETF pitch, amid Germany's debate over the new state pension depot.
What is the campaign's core message?
As board member Martin Gräfer put it, 'Digital versus advice is the wrong debate. We need both' — positioning advice as complementary, not opposed, to digital investing.
Attacking a named rival is risky, but Die Bayerische softened it well — 'we need both' invites the audience in rather than starting a zero-sum fight. The lesson for incumbents: you don't have to out-spend a disruptor, you can out-manoeuvre it. One clever overlay bought more attention than a month of standard insurance ads. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
The takeaway: incumbents can out-manoeuvre disruptors instead of out-spending them — one sharp, generous guerrilla stunt can beat a month of conventional advertising.
Would your brand challenge a disruptor in public, or keep defending its own turf?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: HORIZONT, Presseportal.
Related reading
Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
