European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Speech by Commissioner Albuquerque at Financial and Capital Market Competitiveness Seminar, in Helsinki Helsinki, 10 April 2026 Good morning, distinguished ministers, ladies and gentlemen. First of all, I would like to thank Jyrki and his team at Nordea for bringing us together today. Events like this make my country visits so valuable. During this day and a half ...
European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Speech by Commissioner Albuquerque at Financial and Capital Market Competitiveness Seminar, in Helsinki Helsinki, 10 April 2026 Good morning, distinguished ministers, ladies and gentlemen. First of all, I would like to thank Jyrki and his team at Nordea for bringing us together today. Events like this make my country visits so valuable. During this day and a half visit to Helsinki, I am keen to listen and engage with all stakeholders to better understand the challenges facing Finnish businesses, and what may be holding back an even stronger investment ecosystem here in Helsinki and across Finland. Those of you familiar with my work will know that I often speak about investment ecosystems. That is what I would like to focus on today. I see these ecosystems much broader than capital markets themselves – I see them as an overarching, interconnecting, layer: on one side, financially confident citizens (and businesses) with access to investment opportunities, and on the other, the ability to finance our strategic objectives. And these two sides being connected by effective infrastructures. I believe that, in a room like this, there are a number of shared truths about where Europe stands today. First, the 800-billion-euro annual investment needed to remain competitive is not optional, and public budgets alone will not be enough. Second, defence and security are now central to our strategic autonomy. This is something that is no doubt felt particularly strongly here in Finland, as a frontline state bordering Russia. And it adds roughly 400-billion-euro annually to our investment needs. Third, Europe's scale-up gap must be closed, so that entrepreneurs, including many here in Finland, can build and grow their businesses within Europe. And finally, fragmentation across Europe's financing ecosystem is amplifying all these challenges. It acts as a cost to our citizens and businesses, limits our ability to protect our interests, and weakens our capacity to compete as a single economy. This is the context in which I would like to frame my remarks today. Ladies and gentlemen, the Savings and Investments Union is about creating something in Europe that we are yet to achieve – a true single market for our financial services that builds on effective scale. Scale lowers the cost of capital and allows risks to be shared more effectively. It gives our businesses the financing they need to innovate, invest, and compete - and it gives our citizens better opportunities to make the most out of their savings and to have a stake in Europe's economic growth. So, this is what true scale can bring to us, but we have some work to do before we can make it a reality. Since the beginning of this mandate, this is precisely what I have been working on. When I speak about Europe's financing ecosystem, I refer to a need for more financially savvy Europeans, with better access to capital markets. I'd like to build on that. Unlike here in Finland, where financial literacy is already very prominent- the average across the Union remains low - far too low. For a Union of 450 million people, with some of the highest levels of savings in the world, our citizens deserve real opportunities to put those savings to work. And it is our responsibility to foster citizens' confidence and to make investment in capital markets easy. Most Europeans still receive little or no formal education in managing their finances. At the same time, financial “advice” is everywhere - often unsolicited, rarely tailored, and sometimes driven by bad actors or outright scams. Today, this advice is digital, constant, fast-moving, and too often one-sided. This is why our work on financial literacy matters. Through our first-ever European financial literacy strategy, adopted in September last year, we aim to equip citizens, regardless of where they reside in the EU, with the knowledge and confidence to make their own investment decisions, and to act on them easily, without unnecessary reliance on others. Finland has a lot to share with other Member States in this regard. Knowledge sharing is one of the cornerstones of the EU financial literacy strategy. And just last month, we had the first meeting of the Financial Literacy Ambassadors, including those appointed by Finland - a concrete step in turning our strategy into action across the EU. This knowledge must be coupled with easy ways to invest. Again, Finland is ahead of the pack in this regard, providing a developed and easy to use savings and investment account for citizens. All Europeans deserve an easy way to invest and save for their future. In September last year we recommended that all Member States introduce Savings and Investment Accounts to give citizens simple and accessible entry points into capital markets. Finland can also draw inspiration from the blueprint we developed, to further enhance the attractiveness of the “OST - Osakesäästötili”. In November we complemented this with proposals to expand access to supplementary pension schemes. Together, these are practical and effective ways to support the participation of citizens in capital markets, strengthening their financial resilience and improving long-term returns. Now, I'd like to go back to my point on scale, because I know it's important to all of us in this room. This is not a new debate. The benefits of a Capital Markets Union have been well understood for years. But progress has too often stalled - held back by national fragmentation, entrenched interests, and at times, protectionism. In the past, the absence of a true capital markets union may have been an inefficiency. Today, it is a vulnerability. Without it, we struggle to finance our priorities, we remain exposed to decisions taken elsewhere, and ultimately, we weaken our own economic resilience, and consequently our financial stability. In case you think that not acting, maintaining what we have now, is a neutral decision – it is not. The longer we wait, the further our competitors move ahead, and the smaller Europe becomes in the rear-view mirror. It is high time we stop competing with one another in the EU, and start competing together, as a single market for financial services. The Market Integration and Supervision Package that we put forward in December aims to push us beyond the barriers that have held us back in the past and to take a collective step forward. When I think about what a successful outcome looks like, I see four key shifts: First, a genuine cross-border rulebook that makes passporting a reality, not just a concept. This will include for example one single license to operate several markets in different Member States simultaneously – the new PEMO licence for trading venues. Second, truly connected markets where trading venues, CSDs, and asset managers all have access and contribute to a larger liquidity pool. Think about opportunities created by true interoperability between key infrastructures. Third, fully embracing innovation and distributed ledger technologies, supported by our revised DLT pilot regime and modernised post-trade legislation. And fourth, more efficient and agile supervision. This means single supervision for our most significant cross-border infrastructures and crypto assets service providers and sharper tools for convergence everywhere else. This would bring supervisory consistency and reduce complexity and costs for market participants. This package is not about individual changes or quick fixes, this is a holistic change. I encourage those of you who share our ambition to make your voices heard in achieving a successful outcome. That being said, the SIU is about the ecosystem, so it takes a broad view and encompasses also banking. Banks are critical players in our economy, supporting companies across the Union – in fact, about two thirds of financing for European companies, also in Finland, currently comes from banks. Our focus now is on improving the competitiveness of our banking sector and recognising an important role for banks in the financing of Europe's strategic priorities. Again, this comes down to scale. European banks operating seamlessly across the Union could bring great benefits to citizens and could improve our competitive footing vis-a-vis our global peers. We are currently consulting on the future of banking in Europe. We want to simplify, we want to remove barriers to European operations, we want to complete the Banking Union, and we want our rules to be more proportionate reflecting the diversity of our banking system. Our consultation will lead into a report on the future of European banking, which we will deliver by the third quarter of this year. We will identify the key blockages to competitiveness and set out a clear path forward to deliver on a European banking sector that is fit for the future. Ladies and gentlemen, if there was one word I would like you to take away today, one word to link with our ambition under the SIU, it is scale. We have the talent in Europe, we have the ambition, we have a high level of savings, scale is the key thing missing. The Savings and Investments Union will achieve this scale. It will connect our markets, empower our citizens, and unlock the full potential of our economy. And this goes beyond pure economic benefit – this is about strategic autonomy in Europe. This is a phrase that has been repeated so often it may have lost meaning, though I imagine it has not lost its meaning here in Finland, where the geopolitical reality makes its importance unmistakable. That is the urgency we are working under, and we will need your support to deliver a full and genuine Savings and Investments Union. Because without the backing of policymakers, industry, and investors like you, it will just not happen. So, my message to you is to stay engaged, challenge us, and help drive this agenda forward. Because the cost of inaction is clear, and the opportunity, if we get this right, is immense. Thank you. SPEECH/26/792
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