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The ECB’s third report on financial integration states that there is a risk that the financial integration process in Europe will slow down as a result of the financial and economic crisis. The report notes that while significant progress in European financial integration has been made over a longer period of time, signs of retrenchment within national borders have recently emerged in certain financial market segments.
The report assesses the state of financial integration in the euro area and includes three special features on the impact of the financial crisis on euro area financial integration, the role of institutional investors in financial integration, and on the financing of small and medium-sized enterprises.
A final chapter provides an overview of the main Eurosystem activities in the field of financial integration in 2008.