app. by directly lowering the marketbased financing costs of non - financial corporations, it boosts the pass - through of our monetary policy. under the cspp, the eurosystem has since june 2016 purchased bonds issued by a wide range of non - bank corporations established in the euro area, which include large, as well as some smaller, companies. so far, close to €110 billion of corporate bonds from around 200 issuers, in 20 countries, across all sectors, have been purchased. this information is available on our website and in our publications, and is updated regularly. we continue to analyse possibilities for sharing more information, to the extent that it can enhance transparency without undermining the effectiveness of monetary policy. thanks to our corporate bond purchases, firms in the euro area have witnessed significant improvements in their financing conditions when issuing bonds. but these improvements in financing conditions stemming from the cspp are not confined to the companies whose bonds are purchased or to the corporate bond market : they are evident across firms and other market segments. 2 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches for example, the yield spreads of high - rated corporate bonds that are not eligible for purchase – namely those issued by financial corporations – have fallen by as much as those of eligible bonds issued by non - financial corporations ( almost 70 basis points, from 1. 25 % in march 2016 to 0. 57 % ) since the cspp announcement. spreads of non - investment grade corporate bonds, which are not eligible for the cspp, have also declined by 262 basis points, from 5. 59 % in march 2016 to 2. 97 %. 1 for asset purchases to boost activity and inflation, however, these improvements in financial markets need to be passed through into credit conditions for the real economy. in this regard, we have seen very favourable spillovers into credit conditions for small and medium - sized enterprises. as more corporations seek market - based financing, given the attractive funding conditions prevailing in the capital markets, banks are left with greater capacity to provide loans to smaller companies, which are more constrained in terms of access to funding sources. hence, bank lending rates on very small loans to non - financial corporations have declined by around 50 basis points since the cspp announcement. looking at our latest survey on the access to finance of enterprises, smaller companies are indeed reporting improved financing conditions and better access to finance. the cspp, therefore, has strengthened the pass - through of our asset purchases to the financing conditions of the real

- standard policy measures have been very effective in supporting the financing conditions of companies and households throughout the euro area should not make us forget the situation we witnessed at the peak of the crisis. for example, institutional weaknesses, structural fragilities and excessive risk - taking contributed to a negative feedback loop between sovereigns and banks in some countries, which significantly impaired monetary policy transmission. the resultant contraction in the euro area economy threatened price stability, our primary objective. overcoming this vicious circle required considerable effort. the pattern is now running in reverse, with positive spillovers from all countries. they all have benefited from our measures supporting growth across all of the euro area and thus laying the ground for a sustained return of inflation to levels in line with our aim. but while a cyclical adjustment has been taking place, there are still structural issues which impede sustainable economic convergence. in the years to come, a higher degree of sustained convergence and strengthened resilience will be necessary in order to achieve a better - functioning economic and monetary union. this requires, on the one hand, policy actions by national governments aimed at unlocking the productive potential of our economies. on the other hand, further decisive steps are needed to make economic and monetary union ’ s economic governance truly fit for purpose. thank you for your attention. i am now at your disposal for questions. 1 spreads over the corresponding aaa - rated euro area average yield curve. 2 article 12. 1 of the statute of the european system of central banks and of the european central bank. 3 article 14. 3 of the statute. 4 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches