Europe must press forward even more urgently with key financial reforms

José Manuel González-Páramo is in Rome to participate in the 2016 Rome Investment Forum, a forum for companies, regulators and civil society to debate on the future of Europe. BBVA’s Executive Director used his presentation to urge European authorities to accelerate the integration of the European Union.

Regarding financial reform, he stressed that completing the banking union is crucial. Indeed, leaving it unfinished would increase the fragmentation among financial systems of the member states, and, more important, the financial instability not only in some countries but in the whole Eurozone. He recalled, however, that the creation of a European deposit guarantee scheme is still pending, in order to ensure that all deposits are fully insured in the euro area, regardless of the Member State where the bank is located.

In second place, he underscored that completing the banking union will require a common public backstop to the new Single Resolution Fund, funded by the banking system.

To conclude, he stressed that Europe needs not to relent or weaken faced with new uncertainties, but to press forward even more urgently with its key financial reforms.

José Manuel González-Páramo took part in a roundtable with Roberto Gualtieri, chair of ECON Committee, European Parliament; Vincenzo Boccia, chairman of Confindustria; Valeria Sannucci, Deputy Governor of the italian Bank; Jochen Biederman, Senior Advisor of Frankfurt Main Finance; Francesco Mazzaferro, head of the ESRB Secretariat at ECB; Giovanni Sabatini, chairman at the Executive Committee of the European Banking Federation and director general of the Italian Banking Association.