The outlook for European financial centres

The 2008 banking crisis has severely shaken financial centres. The crisis was a multi-facetted systemic failure – in products, supervision and corporate governance. Solutions to these problems are not straightforward. A future crises, of a different character from the past, will still occur through threats and vulnerabilities. The norm therefore should be for a well-regulated financial sector, supporting economic growth in good times, but with built-in support systems that are well designed to resist shocks and contagion in bad times. This is important so that the banking system and financial markets can readily deliver faster growth with stability.

Financial services provide support for households, businesses and governments and increasing the potential for trade-led growth and investment throughout the EU economies. This is in line with the aspirations for the Europe 2020 strategy – both tapping the potential of the Single Market and attracting private capital to finance growth.

In a world of increasingly mobile capital and talent, financial centres need to be deep and concentrated so as to establish regional advantage as business hubs, conduits for capital flows and pools of expertise and innovation. Within the EU, finance centres provide substantial direct benefits in terms of tax revenue, export earnings, employment and capital flows.

Presentation by Georg Ringe

Presentation by William Wright