the economy. there are two things i can say in response. first, i do not see that regulation keeps banks from their traditional business of financing the economy. loans to private households and smaller companies are treated very favourably when it comes to capital requirements. think of the support factor in article 501 of the capital requirements regulation. this factor was introduced to facilitate the financing of small and medium - sized enterprises. i also do not see that regulation keeps banks from developing new business models – those, for instance, that follow from digitalisation. second, critics neglect the benefits of strong rules. strong rules prevent crises, and crises hurt the economy. 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches at the end of the day, it is only well - managed and well - capitalised banks that are able to finance the economy – even when the going gets tough. they can finance the economy throughout the entire business cycle. poorly capitalised and poorly managed banks, on the other hand, cannot support the economy during downturns – they get into difficulty themselves. strong rules therefore help the economy in a sustainable way. and even if we only consider the banks, we still see benefits. stronger rules increase trust. and as a result of the crisis, a great deal of trust was lost. and that ’ s a problem for banks because trust is a crucial asset for them. trust has a positive impact on funding costs for banks, and it determines how attractive a bank is for business partners who think long - term. strong rules thus help the banks, too. altogether, i am convinced that the benefits of regulation are greater than the costs. but rules can only take us so far. ultimately, it is people who make good or bad decisions. and this is where banks ’ risk managers come into play. they are the first line of defence against excessive risks. thank you for your attention. 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches

interview capital markets union : the role of equity markets and sustainable finance contribution by luis de guindos, vice - president of the ecb, on the occasion of the publication of the ecb report on “ financial integration and structure in the euro area ”, frankfurt 3 march 2020 the release of the ecb report on “ financial integration and structure in the euro area ” is an excellent opportunity to share some thoughts on the european capital markets union, or cmu project. well - functioning and innovative capital markets are essential in enabling firms, households and governments to access stable funding and saving opportunities that are vital for consumption, investment and, ultimately, economic growth and employment. one could even argue that the cmu is a common denominator across many – if not all – eu strategies and a pillar for strengthening the eu ’ s autonomy on the global stage. without progress towards a fullyfledged cmu, we will face significant difficulties in effectively addressing the global challenges facing the eu. further developing and integrating eu capital markets takes on even more urgency in light of the challenges posed by the united kingdom ’ s departure from the eu. last, but certainly not least, there are strong synergies between the completion of the cmu and the finalisation of banking union. though the world of finance may sometimes seem distant or arcane, it is more important to people ’ s everyday lives than many might think. for one, badly functioning financial systems have the potential to harm all of us – as the experiences of 2008 and beyond have shown. i will start with a short update on the progress achieved so far, and then turn to the way forward, focusing on two key dimensions in developing deeper capital markets : risk capital markets and sustainable finance. significant advances were made in the first phase of the cmu, but more can be achieved following its launch in 2015, the cmu agenda led to some important accomplishments. thanks to the efforts of the european commission together with the council and parliament, 11 out of 13 proposals from the original action plan were successfully adopted across a number of important areas, including insolvency frameworks, covered bonds, securitisation markets and the development of a pan - european pension product. these policies are expected to have very positive effects on the development and integration of eu capital markets, even though initial ambitions had to be scaled back in some cases in order to reach agreement among the co - legislators. while it will take time for the full impact of these measures to un