( between eur 110 billion and eur 120 billion at end - 2020 ) towards investment in reconstruction. the fact that our financial institutions have insufficient levels of profitability should now be a focus of attention : between 2015 and 2019, the roe of the main french banks stabilised at an average of around 6 %, which is close to the european average but half that of us banks. this will in large part depend on the institutions themselves, on their ability to speed up their adaptation, to digitalise and to innovate, especially in the field of payments : we have two years – no more – to build a european alternative to the bigtechs. fintechs – “ la french tech ” – are an asset to our financial marketplace and not a threat. but public authorities also have their role to play : stable regulations and taxes in france, at least for 2021, would help. and a prudent return of dividend payments would also be a welcome step, albeit only a first one, towards making them more attractive and increasing their – essential – capacity to raise capital. for banks, we will apply the very prudent decision of the ssm. for insurers, the decision falls to the acpr and we shall take it by february in as balanced a way as possible, including with regard to the rules adopted elsewhere in the world. 2021, a year of uncertainties, but also one of work, the year of a rebound and even a year of progress : that is all i wish for us, and that i wish to each and every one of you. happy new year!

activities in europe and has, hence, supported the smooth transmission of our common monetary policy across the euro zone. despite this achievement in the field of financial integration, it has become evident that this is not enough. in particular, in the field of retail payments and securities settlement i see a lot more to do! this monetary union was culminated with the establishment of the central bank under the banking act of 1875 and the introduction of the “ deutsche mark ” as single currency. in my intervention today i will, therefore, focus on two projects that aim to address the fragmentation still present in the field of retail payments and securities settlement : the single euro payments area ( sepa ) and target2 securities ( t2s ). let me start with sepa. as you are certainly aware, just recently, we published the eurosystem ’ s 7th progress report on sepa, in which we welcome the overall progress made in delivering sepa but also indicate areas where more work is still needed. certainly, many stakeholders want to bring the sepa project further and have contributed to its progress so far. first, enormous progress has been made by the payments industry in delivering sepa. in particular, the sepa direct debit design and launch in november 2009 is, in my view, the most remarkable development on the payments industry side. the sepa direct debit is a key payment instrument as it is the first time that a utility company, like, for example, your telecommunications provider, can charge your account regardless of the country of its location and regardless of the location of the bank at which you have your account. this represents a big improvement as it finally allows customers to conduct all euro payments within europe from one single account. the sepa direct debit is good for everyone. companies and individuals will benefit from increased competition and will be able to get the payments provider that best fits their needs. in germany, the implementation of the sepa direct debit should not represent a big challenge as the sepa direct debit scheme is very similar to what already has been available at national level for a long time. in this respect, i encourage german stakeholders to find a pragmatic solution regarding the mandate migration. such solution should limit the efforts for companies as well as for customers. second, i believe that we should not forget the role public authorities are playing to get sepa up and running. all but one of the eu member states have finalised the transposition of the payment services directive in their national