. yet another would be to tweak ipo prospectus requirements in a move to do away with unnecessary red tape. looking into the more distant future, it would make sense to harmonise insolvency law, company law and tax law. however, we should not focus on the institutional and legal framework to the exclusion of everything else. it would probably also be worthwhile to take into account soft factors such as cultural preferences for certain forms of financing or financial literacy levels. these are areas we will also need to address if we are to achieve our goal of establishing a european capital markets union. 6. conclusion ladies and gentlemen, the road to a european capital markets union is a long and winding one. the journey will be arduous and time - consuming. there will be challenges and resistance we must overcome along the way. so we need to be realistic about what we are setting out to achieve. and yet we have travelled this road to deeper financial integration for 16 years now – since the year, in fact, in which we launched the euro as a common european currency. and we must not falter. if we want european monetary union to be a true success, we will need to press ahead towards ever deeper integration. we took a huge stride on this path in november 2014 with the launch of the banking union. now the next major step is in order – the establishment of a european capital markets union. a capital markets union which includes not just the member states of the euro area but embraces the entire european union. on that note, i would like to bring my speech to a close with a quote that has been attributed to robert f kennedy. “ there are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why? i dream of things that never were, and ask why not? ” looking at the capital markets union, i believe we should take this confident and optimistic outlook to heart. thank you very much. bis central bankers ’ speeches

, the question is whether it is possible to consolidate the country ’ s banks without seriously distorting the competitive environment. this is a question that needs to be answered without delay. to sum up – time is of the essence, especially so for greece ’ s banks. everyone should be aware that monday ’ s basic agreement marks the start of the real work. now it is up to all the parties concerned to do their jobs to make sure that five months of negotiations weren ’ t in vain – and the focal point here, for me, is the greek banking sector. after all, it ’ s not just greece we ’ re talking about here but the euro area as a whole. and many seem to believe that the crisis in and over greece has cast doubts over the very process of european integration. but i do not share that view. the proper response, in my view, is not less, but more, integration. and we took a major step towards deeper integration by launching the european banking union. but we need to look beyond the banking sector and train our sights on the capital markets as well. extending and integrating the capital markets can also contribute to shoring up the foundations underpinning monetary union. after all, a common currency needs integrated financial markets to thrive. this idea of a capital markets union has increasingly taken shape in recent months. back in february, the european commission presented a green paper outlining a framework for a european capital markets union. the bundesbank sees the capital markets union as a sensible project that is conducive to deepening european financial integration further still – not only in the euro area but across the european union. but how exactly do we define a capital markets union, and how can we make this idea reality? bis central bankers ’ speeches 3. diversification – strengthening the capital markets the european capital markets union essentially sets out to achieve two goals. first, to strengthen the role played by the capital markets in funding the real economy. second, to deepen capital market integration across national borders. the first goal sometimes prompts the question whether a financial system geared to the capital markets is superior to one built around banks. empirical research into this question can be summarised quite succinctly – we ’ re not quite sure. but what we do know is that both systems have their merits, which vary depending on how well a country ’ s economy is developed and how it is faring at a given point in time. the better developed an economy