EBF: Financial integration report highlights EU fragmentation

26 September 2014

The report reveals that in the glare of economic crisis, the previous integration was not sustained by an appropriate institutional framework. Financial markets still remain significantly fragmented in the euro area.

Financial integration is extremely important to the EU economy given that a well-integrated financial system:

• facilitates the smooth implementation of monetary policy, and the balanced transmission of its effects throughout the Euro Area;
• contributes to financial stability by creating larger, more liquid and competitive markets offering increased possibilities for financing and risk diversification;
• promotes the smooth operation of the payments’ system; and
• acts to allocate societies savings into productive investment.

But at present, as  the report highlights, financial fragmentation remains a severe obstacle to economic recovery in Europe. Its assessment examines the various causes and manifestations of fragmentation, while exploring the different measures able to improve the situation and proposing our recommendations.

Full article on EBF

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