Completing the Capital Markets Union: Building on the first round of achievements

Today the Commission is taking further steps to drive forward the Capital Markets Union (CMU), a pivotal project of the Juncker Commission to boost jobs and growth in Europe. After almost two years since the launch of the CMU Action Plan, the Commission is presenting today a number of important new initiatives to ensure that this reform programme remains fit for purpose. The CMU is a key pillar of the Commission’s Investment Plan for Europe, the so-called Juncker Plan. Through a mix of regulatory and non-regulatory reforms, this project seeks to better connect savings to investments. It aims to strengthen Europe’s financial system by providing alternative sources of financing and more opportunities for consumers and institutional investors.

For companies, especially SMEs and start-ups, the CMU means accessing more funding opportunities, such as venture capital and crowdfunding. European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis, responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, said: “The CMU remains at the heart of our efforts to boost European investment and create jobs and growth. As we face the departure of the largest EU financial centre, we are committed to stepping up our efforts to further strengthen and integrate the EU capital markets. This review makes clear the scale of the challenge and we count on the support of the European Parliament and Member States to rise to it.”

European Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen, responsible for Jobs, Growth and Investment, said: “The Commission has worked hard to give decisive impetus to the CMU. In just twenty months, we have delivered two-thirds of our initial commitments and other important actions are in the pipeline. We are now expanding our scope to meet new challenges such as funding sustainable investment and harnessing the potential of FinTech. The new measures presented here today renew and reinforce the Commission’s commitment and set us on an irreversible path towards the CMU.”

The Mid-Term Review reports on the good progress made so far in implementing the 2015 Action Plan, with around two-thirds of the 33 actions delivered in twenty months