The ecological transition offers a "
unique opportunity
" to unify capital markets in the EU, an imperative in the face of huge investment needs, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Thursday at a conference European.
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“
I believe that the green transition offers us a unique opportunity to build a truly European capital market that transcends national borders - or what I would call the Green Capital Markets Union
,” said Christine Lagarde during a presentation video intervention.
Long mentioned, the integration of capital markets within the EU remains very incomplete, even if many initiatives have emerged to develop the financing of the economy, which is mainly based on bank loans, via greater use of institutional investors such as pension funds, insurance companies or households.
For Europe to achieve its objectives of gradually reducing CO2 emissions, major investments are necessary and a fragmentation between national financial markets "
could limit our ability to finance future investments
," said the Frenchwoman.
The recent proposal of the European Commission to harmonize the rules on information relating to the sustainable development of companies is "
a key element
" to strengthen this integration, she underlined.
Investments estimated at 330 billion euros per year
But there is still a lack of "
adequate European supervision of green financial products
" leading to awarding them an official label, as well as "
harmonized tax treatment
" for investments in sustainable financing products.
The need for investment in the EU promises to be colossal, estimated at around 330 billion euros per year to finance climate and energy efforts, to which are added around 125 billion euros per year to carry out to digital transformation.
Europe has already established itself as a place of choice for the issuance of green bonds, which finance projects that help sustainable development.
And to consolidate this trend, the European Commission will soon place 225 billion euros in green bonds as part of the post-pandemic recovery plan known as “
Next Generation EU
”.
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But if the EU "
cannot provide the services sought by foreign investors and issuers, they will go elsewhere,
" warns Christine Lagarde.
The opening of national capital markets and their full harmonization "
will take time
", she conceded.