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European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Speech by Commissioner Albuquerque (by video message) for the BaFin - Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht second annual financial market conference Online, 23 June 2026 Good morning to all of you in Frankfurt, and many thanks for the opportunity to contribute to this year's BaFin Capital Markets Conference. Unfortunately, my schedule did not allow me t...
European Commission - Speech [Check Against Delivery] Speech by Commissioner Albuquerque (by video message) for the BaFin - Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht second annual financial market conference Online, 23 June 2026 Good morning to all of you in Frankfurt, and many thanks for the opportunity to contribute to this year's BaFin Capital Markets Conference. Unfortunately, my schedule did not allow me to join you in person. Nevertheless, I wanted to make sure I could share a few thoughts before you begin what promises to be a very timely and important discussion on the future of Europe's capital markets. Today's discussions go to the heart of what we are trying to achieve through the Savings and Investments Union. You will discuss how companies, including SMEs, can access financing they need to grow and innovate, how we can make Europe's public markets more attractive and competitive, and how we can offer citizens better opportunities to save, invest and build long-term financial security. I see these not as separate questions, but as different dimensions of the same challenge: building deeper, more integrated and more effective European capital markets that help companies grow, enable citizens to save and plan for the future, and strengthen Europe's competitiveness. Ladies and gentlemen, the problem for companies trying to grow in the European Union has been identified many times over. We can speak about scale, we can speak about fragmented markets, and we can speak about the need for a deeper investor base. Those are real problems and we are working hard to address them. But one other issue is especially important for companies at that critical stage when they are ready to grow, raise capital and perhaps take the step towards public markets, and that issue is complexity. Too often, the path to listing in Europe has been seen as too costly, too burdensome and too uncertain. This can make public markets feel less like an opportunity and more like an obstacle. That is why the Listing Act matters. It responds to the challenge of complexity with targeted measures at each stage of the journey to public markets, before the IPO, during the IPO, and after a company has listed. We brought in multiple vote share structures, giving founders the possibility to list while holding on to the strategic direction of the firm. We brought in changes to the prospectus to make it cheaper, faster and easier to pass this administrative hurdle. And for SMEs, we also created a dedicated EU Growth issuance prospectus, reducing administrative burdens and making it even easier for those companies without significant resources and at an earlier stage of their development to get listed on an exchange. And once listed, thanks to the Listing Act, companies now have more clarity on disclosure obligations for inside information, along with measures to support investment research. Beyond these measures, our level 2 rules, which are either already applicable or are currently being finalised, will bring more clarity, and will remove additional barriers from the system. The Listing Act is a step forward for companies looking to list in the EU and is a necessary step in our journey towards a more effective financing ecosystem. However, it should not be seen in isolation. We have just recently closed a public consultation on possible avenues for providing early-stage investors with better exit options. We are currently analysing the responses and considering further action. More broadly, we perceive a growing demand by founders and early-stage investors, who, beyond seeking to realise attractive valuations, are increasingly keen on doing so in a manner that will keep the underlying companies and talents in Europe, close to their roots. Providing a response to this challenge is one part of our broader strategy to improve capital allocation throughout the Union. Institutional investors have a major role to play in this agenda. A strong institutional investment sector provides two things that Europe needs - better long-term savings opportunities for citizens, and a deeper supply of patient capital for our economy. As policymakers, our task is to make sure nothing stands in the way of that capital being put to work in Europe. That is why we have taken steps to provide more clarity and expand investment capacity for institutional investors, including insurers and banks. And it is why we are working to deepen supplementary pension markets across the EU, because this is good for citizens, good for companies, and good for European growth. But capital will not flow at scale if the market around it remains fragmented, complex or difficult to navigate. That is where our Market Integration and Supervision Package, known as MISP, comes in. Its purpose is to remove barriers that continue to fragment our markets and bring us closer to a true single market for capital. But MISP should also be seen as a simplification exercise. Fragmentation creates complexity. Different rules, different interpretations and different supervisory approaches increase costs and reduce efficiency. By making our markets more integrated, MISP will help them become more effective, more seamless, and ultimately simpler to navigate for both companies and investors. This reflects the wider priority of this Commission for the future. Across policy areas, we will continue to build simplicity into our rules by design, we will tackle regulatory gold-plating, and we will focus on faster and more robust enforcement. On that note, let me thank you once again for the invitation. I wish you a very engaging and productive conference. SPEECH/26/1432 Related media Message by Maria Luís Albuquerque, European Commissioner, on the occasion of the Capital Markets Conference
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