gone are the days when european citizens had to worry about the purchasing power of their savings. this stability goes beyond the behaviour of prices. inflation expectations themselves have been remarkably stable, including during the recent period when oil prices jumped to new highs. this, by itself, illustrates the credibility achieved by the eurosystem. second, the ecb ’ s clear priority of price stability has reduced the risk premium incorporated in long term interest rates. bond yields have, consequently, been low by historical standards, a phenomenon which has substantially facilitated private investment. this in turn, will not fail to have a highly positive effect on growth. a third benefit of the euro is the removal of exchange rate risk and transaction costs for intra euro area trade. this has promoted trade integration among euro area countries without diverting trade with other countries. indeed, it appears that business cycles tend to be more and more synchronized over time, an evolution which allows for greater efficiency and sustainability of the common monetary policy. this shows that monetary union is a self sustaining process : real convergence is to some extent a result, as much as a precondition of economic integration. another benefit of the euro is the boost it gives to financial integration in europe. in many segments, european financial markets have reached the depth and liquidity which, up to now, were the preserve of dollar markets. this stimulates productive investment, helps in restructuring and, more generally, allows a better allocation of savings and sharing of risks. the current market turmoil is a clear test for this achievement and while the problems affecting the euro markets have been comparable to those affecting the other major markets, the strength of the euro shows, to some extent, that it has become a safe haven in our globalized financial world. the euro is becoming extremely attractive, as a vehicle, a transaction, an investment and a reserve currency. as you may know, as central bankers, we remain neutral as far as the internationalisation of the euro is concerned. we are neither encouraging, nor discouraging the process. but, as a citizen, i cannot help and feel proud of having one the two main currencies in the world. these achievements are the fruits of a long term process of reforms and credibility building, but they are not carved in marble. looking at the many challenges we are facing we could even wonder if monetary integration is really sustainable in the long run. my answer is positive and i am strongly optimistic about the future for the euro, because we have a clear agenda

acpr - amf forum fintech – paris, 19 october 2022 speech by francois villeroy de galhau, governor of the banque de france chairman of the acpr press contact : mark deen ( mark. deen @ banque - france. fr ) and deborah guedj ( deborah. guedj @ banque - france. fr ) page 1 of 5 dear minister, ladies and gentlemen, i am very happy to be with you again for this third edition of the fintech forum, organised jointly by the acpr and amf : i would like to extend my warm thanks to minister jean - noel barrot for being here today, and my friendly greetings to benoit de juvigny. following on from last year ’ s success, this year ’ s event has again been organised as part of the " french fintech week ", in association with france fintech [ a fintech industry body ] and swave [ the first french start - up accelerator dedicated to financial services ]. this year i would like to welcome you all to the magnificent salle gaveau, a historical concert hall where i hope you will today hear a harmonious performance : the concordant voices of institutions and public authorities expressing their commitment to supporting our fintech ecosystem – a fertile source of innovation that is essential for the french economy. we want to help the fintechs become a lasting and integral part of our financial landscape ( i ). we will continue to work hard to keep pace with the digital transformations under way – especially in crypto - assets ( ii ). * * * i. fintechs, major vectors of digital innovation, are becoming lastingly implanted in the financial landscape 1. fintechs, leading players in the digital revolution the digital revolution has ushered in a new wave of players, activities and services that first swept into the payments sector, and then spread gradually to all financial services. some of you, the fintechs, are living proof of this : more than half of all payment and electronic money institutions received their licence between 2018 and 2021, in other words since european regulations relaxed the conditions for market entry. i fintechs are here to stay : to give just one example, according to an acpr study published in july, ii online banks and other 100 % digital payment players doubled their customer base between 2018 and 2020, and in 2020 alone captured 35 % of new retail current accounts. the rise in interest rates should help them on the